


Repetition

by SilverMidnight



Category: NCIS
Genre: M/M, Murder, Sexual Fantasy, case study
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-29
Updated: 2016-12-02
Packaged: 2018-08-27 19:10:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 28,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8413279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverMidnight/pseuds/SilverMidnight
Summary: Master Sergeant Timothy McGee has just returned to Washington D.C. from Afghanistan only to be pulled into a NCIS investigation. He finds himself having to help Team Gibbs find a killer. The hardest part though is spending time around Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. How does their relationship change when they catch the killer? Or when McGee's new orders come in?





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.

Thunder rumbled through the sky shaking the small house. A gasp fell from Alice's lips her eyes going wide at the sound. It took her mind a second to process the noise before she chuckled softly. It always amused her how she could be afraid of thunder even after two tours in Iraq.

With a shake of her head the young woman set the book she was reading down. Her back and neck popped as she stood up drawing a soft sigh of pleasure to fall from her lips. Making her way through her home she let herself take everything in.

Alice had only been back home for a few days and it felt wonderful to have her own space again. It wasn't that she didn't love her career or her team, but it was nice not to have to really think about everything that needed to be done in the battlefield.

She knew that she wasn't completely safe no matter where she was, but being in civilian life meant that she didn't have to look over her shoulder every second of every day. That didn't stop her from doing so, but she was able to laugh it off instead of feeling as if she just couldn't find the threat.

Shaking her head she pushed the thoughts from her mind. She only had two weeks of free time before she had to got back to the Navy and she was going to enjoy it while she could. Of course, by 'enjoy' she meant sitting at home reading romance novels, watching chick flicks, and doing her make-up and nails for the hell of it.

The Military didn't really leave much time for people to be individuals. That was one of the reasons that she loved being on leave. She wouldn't give up her career for a little girl time though. Mostly because she wasn't to ensure that there would be a safe future for others to have a safe girl time.

The kitchen filled with lightning as she took a mug from her cabinet. Her heart sped up almost instantly, but she pushed it away. At least she tried to. For the first time since she got home the hairs of the back of her neck stood up. It felt as if someone was watching her.

Turning away from her drink Alice found herself wishing that her gun was closer than her bedroom. Steeling her nerves she picked up a knife and began to creep through her house. It felt so wrong to be acting like she was in her own home.

Her eyes darted around the hallway as another bit of thunder echoed through the house. As the noise rumbled through the city she turned into the living room just in time for another flash of lightning to illuminate the room and the figure by the couch she had been lying on.

Narrowing her eyes she gripped the knife tighter ready for a fight. Slowly the figure turned around revealing itself to her. Gasping she felt the knife slip from her hands as the intruder raised his. With a dark smirk he fired his gun the bullet tearing through her throat.


	2. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.

Closing his eyes Tony kicked his feet up on his desk letting his teammate's voices wash over him. After the few weeks they had been having it was nice to be able to simply be able to sit back and relax. Of course there was a chance that he had better things to do than just sit there, but he wanted to simply focus on his team.

It wasn't all that surprising that the case hadn't exactly been the cut and dry case that he had thought it had been in the beginning. Actually, it had been cut and dry. It was easy to follow the evidence and find out exactly who had committed the crime. It was when they went to arrest them that things took a turn.

They had known the suspect would be armed, but they hadn't thought that they would be as insane as they were. Tony had walked away with more than a few bruises, but Ziva and Bishop weren't as lucky. Bishop had to have her wrist wrapped for two weeks at the least while Ziva had a bruised rib as well as a split lip and black eye.

In the back of his mind Tony knew that both women would be fine, but it was still nice to be able to see it first hand. Being able to hear them talk about something as mundane as what to get their significant others for Valentine's Day. The words washed over him bringing a sense of peace that only came when they were together.

He knew that he was excluding a lot of people on the team by only focusing on Ziva and Ellie, but in his mind they were the ones that he took care of while Gibbs took care of everyone all together. Okay, so technically neither of them needed him to take care of them, but that never stopped him from doing so.

"Grab your gear," Gibbs rough voice barked walking into the bullpen.

"What do we have, Gibbs?" Bishop questioned as they made their way towards the elevator.

"Dead Corporal found in her apartment."

The ride to the crime scene was quiet for the most part. Ziva and Bishop kept up their conversation with Tony throwing in a few comments that had them laughing and calling him a pervert. Even with their talking Tony could feel his Boss's eyes watching him with curiosity. Almost as if the man knew something Tony didn't.

That wasn't all that hard to believe. Gibbs always seemed to be three steps a head of everyone. Even when it came to what was going on in their personal lives. Every time Tony saw that look he knew that something huge was going to happen in his life. He wasn't sure he was ready for that to happen.

Before Tony could think of something to say to the older man they were pulling up to the crime scene. Shaking his head he got out of the van ready to be as professional as he ever was. It wasn't that he didn't take his job seriously he had just seen one too many good cops burn out because they never let themselves rest.

Ziva handed him his bag before moving to talk to the police that had been called to the scene. Gibbs went off to do whatever it was that the man did while Bishop began to talk to the people that had found the victim. That left him to start taking photos and bagging and tagging. His least favorite thing to do.

Still he found himself walking around the scene looking for anything and everything that could help them. It was times like this that his mind started to question himself. Another thing that he hated. He liked knowing exactly what he was doing and why he was doing it. It made him feel better about his choices.

Not that he disliked his choices. He loved the life that he lead and he wouldn't change it for anything. At least that's what he thought most days. Then there were days where he wondered if there was a chance for him to have the white-picket fence life with the person he loved.

He never let his mind focus on those thoughts for long. It never lead anywhere good. It wasn't that he thought he couldn't have that life, but he had walked away from that little dream when he was younger out of fear that it was what would push him to be like his Father.

Don't get him wrong he loved the old man, but the last thing he wanted was to be like him. The man had caused too much damage to him when he had been a child that the thought of doing that to another person terrified him. There was enough bad things in the world to hurt them without him adding to it.

"Ah, Mr. DiNozzo," Ducky greeted when he walked into the crime scene, "You're just in time. Help Mr. Palmer roll over dear girl onto her back."

Nodding his head Tony did as the M.E. requested. As they rolled her over the agent let his mind go into overtime. He made up every situation he could think of. It was one of the things that made him a good detective. At least that's what he liked to think. If he could think outside the box than nothing could hold him back.

"Gunshot wound to the throat," Ducky spoke his voice taking on a sad tone, "She wouldn't have been able to scream. Who did this to you, Darling?"

"Do we have an I.D.?" Gibbs questioned walking into the room."

"Alice Atwell," Bishop answered looking between her phone and the body, "According to the neighbors she was nice enough, but didn't really leave the house. Though she did order a lot of take out."

"Probably getting things she can't get overseas," Palmer jumped in looking up from the paper he was writing on, "Though I have to admit I would rather have a nice home cooked meal like my Mom used to make. Oh, I should really call her."

Looking down at the victim Tony snapped a few pictures ignoring the assistant M.E. She looked so young. Her brown eyes were opened wide, fear still in them even in death. With just that in mind the man was almost completely positive that she knew who it was that killed her.

It wasn't all that surprising though. When it came down to it most people were killed by someone that they were close to. Not just close to the person though most of them were the closest person. The worst part to him was that at the end of the investigation the killer almost always exclaimed their love.

That was another reason that he had such a hard time settling down. How was he supposed to believe in 'happily ever after' when all he saw was it ending bloody? Alright, so it didn't always end badly, but it did end. And yes, he was very aware that he was making excuses for not letting himself do the whole 'functioning adult thing'.

"Doesn't look like she had much here," Tony piped up looking around the apartment, "Seems like the only personal items are a handful of books from the library. Besides her clothes."

"Finish up here," Gibbs ordered looking away from the victim.

Nodding their heads the team went about the scene gathering evidence. Tony hadn't been joking when he said that there wasn't much in the apartment. From what he could tell she didn't really have much of a life outside of the military and it seemed that was the way she liked it.

It took more than a few hours to go through everything in the small place collecting everything they thought could help them. There really wasn't much in the evidence department. At least, none of the evidence made sense to them yet. Hopefully more clues would come out as they went on.

As sad as it sounded it was actually easy for a case to go cold. No matter how much time the police looked for evidence and suspects if there wasn't anything to be found at the time then there was nothing they could do. It was one of the sad facts of being a cop that they all hated.

By the time the team ended up back at the office it was a little past noon. Bishop went to pick up lunch for them while Ziva went to drop the evidence with Abby. That left Tony to find out what he could on the victim. The same thing that happened every case.

As much as he loved his job there were points in time when he noticed that it was basically the same thing over and over. Though maybe that wasn't just his job. When it came to his life nothing had changed in years. He was the same person that he had always been.

Letting out a soft groan to himself he made his way to his desk. He had more important things to do than think about himself. Alice needs someone to find out who killed her. She didn't need him to be stuck in his mind trying not to have an existential crisis.

After a few deep breaths Tony began to find everything he could on the victim. There wasn't much on social media though that wasn't all that surprising. The only two he could find were Facebook and YouTube. Both of which were used so rarely he was surprised they were still valid accounts.

It looked like she was one of the few people that used the sites for their intended purpose. She only had fifty so friends on Facebook and it seemed like she knew all of them in real life. From the posts on her page there were only a handful of people that she actually talked to.

Making a note of the people that she talked to over the past few days Tony moved on to finding out more of her work. He didn't get very far before realizing that she wasn't into anything top secret. She was a soldier through and through. That was all she cared about.

"Hey, Tony," Bishop greeted walking up to his desk, "Got your burger."

"Thanks," he smiled taking his food.

"You find anything on our vic yet?"

"Outside of her being a damn good soldier? Nothing. It looks like the military was her life and nothing was classified from what I can tell. She went into war zones and kept her team and innocent people safe. So far there's no reason for anyone to want to kill her."

"That's weird seeing how she was killed. I mean, the killer shot her in the throat. That has to mean something. Right?"

Tony had to admit that the blonde was right. There was something behind the killer aiming and shooting Alice in the throat. Either the killer was horrible at shooting guns or there was symbolism behind it. He wasn't exactly sure which one it was just yet. He was leaning towards symbolism though.

Before long Ziva joined them and began to work on her computer. The three of them silently talking to the contacts and going about the investigation on their own terms. They'd compare notes later to see if anything stood out for all of them to notice.

"What do we got?" Gibbs questioned walking into the bullpen sometime later.

"Alice Atwell," Ziva started picking up the remote and opening the file, "Twenty-four years old. She was praised by all the people that I spoke to. She would be moving up in the ranks quickly if not for the fact that she loved her job."

"Wait," Bishop interrupted confused, "Wouldn't her loving her job mean she'd move up higher faster?"

"According to what her C.O. said she wanted to stay in the field. He said that she spoke of her moving up when she could no longer fight."

"That's what I've heard too," Tony spoke up shaking his head, "I don't know why anyone would want to kill her. Her friends say she was well-liked. Didn't really get out much when she was on leave. Only went out with them on the first and last days of her leave unless something major was happening. Her best friend, Casey Kilpatrick, said that Alice liked to spend a few days alone catching up on whatever it was she missed."

"That's basically what I got too," Bishop shrugged, "She lived for her work and none of it was classified. She was a soldier that wanted to keep as many innocent people safe as possible. That was all. There's nothing hugely important in her files."

"So we got nothing," Gibbs stated glaring at the three of them.

Looking around Tony noticed both women look away from their boss. A sinking feeling sat in the pit of his stomach at that. It was looking more and more like the case was going to be a cold case after just a few hours. Unless Abby and Ducky found something big.

"Find me something," Gibbs growled before turning and walking to the elevator.

Slowly the team went back to their desks lost in their own thoughts. None of them had any idea what they were missing. There was either a huge part of her life that was completely hidden or someone picked her out of a crowd and decided it was time of her life to end.

"None of this makes sense," Tony sighed looking at his teammates, "There's no reason for anyone to want to kill her."

"We are missing something," Ziva agreed with a nod.

"We might have to wait until Abby and Ducky are done," Bishop said looking between the other two, "At least they still have a chance of pointing us which way to go."

"Gibbs is not going to like that," Tony replied standing up, "Why don't you two go talk to her C.O. in person? Maybe he'll think of something when he's being questioned face to face. I'm going to talk to Abby."

Bishop and Ziva nodded their heads and began their track down to the cars. It was easy to see that both of them were just as frustrated by what was happening. Or, for a better term, what was not happening. No one liked begin in the dark when it was their job to bring light.

"Hey, Abby." Tony grinned holding up a Caf-Pow as he walked into the lab, "Got anything?"

"Almost sounded like Gibbs, Tony," Abby said spinning towards him, "Needs a little more work though."

"I don't think anyone but Gibbs could pull off being Gibbs but Gibbs. Does this distraction mean you have nothing?"

"Oh ye of little faith. I don't have all the evidence analyzed yet, but when I was going through her clothes I found this."

Abby held a small notepad with a flourish. It looked a little beat up like it had been used everyday for years. Alice obviously used it a lot. Though if it was that beat up he was surprised that there was only one. Unless she had more of them secreted away.

"Does it say anything that could help us?" Tony questioned reaching out to take it.

"Maybe," Abby said staring at it, "It's hard to tell what's important and what's not. She does say a few names that might help you. I think parts of it are in code though. So we'll have to find a way to figure it out."

"Thanks. Send me the names and I'll look into them. I'm going to go back to her place. Maybe she has some more of those secreted away."

Tony left the lab with a little more hope. He'd take missing some information over it not being there at all. Going down to the cars he sent a quick text to his teammates telling them where he'd be. If he ended up there for too long they'd be able to drag him back to the office.

Getting to the small apartment he began to look for more notebooks. There weren't a lot of places for them to be hidden, especially since she didn't own the place, but there were enough. People got really creative whenever they wanted to hide something. Or they put it in plain sight.

Taking a deep breath Tony began to work. Digging through room after room. Going over places they had already searched. Tearing apart the victims home in hope that doing so would bring some peace to her. All he knew was that there wasn't much of a choice on his part.

A sigh fell from his lips as he looked around the now destroyed living room. There wasn't a single notebook in the place. So far that meant the living room, kitchen, and closet were clean. That left the bedroom and bathroom. Though the last one was probably unlikely.

Going into the bedroom hazel eyes scanned the place. It was probably one of the most simple bedrooms he had ever seen. Also one of the cleanest. Even if he hadn't known she was military her room would have given her away. Unless she had been raised in a military family.

Picking up his phone he started to make a list of things that needed to be done. By now the list was a bit longer, but he only had one thing to do other than searching for what looked like a lost cause. There were no other notebooks. Which was either a good or bad thing.

Once he was done writing himself a note he got back to work. Starting with the closet he checked every pocket and the inside of every shoe. The boxes on the top shelf were taken down and emptied revealing nothing. They were just filled with little things that Alice had to have gotten from her travels.

Picking up a small doll Tony thought back to all the times he moved. These boxes were things Alice were saving for when she owned a house she could spend her time in. Maybe she wasn't as okay with being a simple soldier as everyone made her seem to be.

Making another note to look into that he moved onto the bookshelf. It was filled with new books as well as some well-loved ones. It looked like the woman was rather large on reading. He began to take the books off the shelves and go through them.

"Huh," Tony muttered to himself staring down at what should be a copy of 'Macbeth'.

A small smirk came to his lips realizing that he had found what could be a major clue. The words were just a jumble of letters. It had been awhile since he had read Shakespeare, but he was sure that it was just in his head that it had been written in another language.

The rest of the search came up empty, but that was enough. They possibly have a lead on the case. It was worth the hours of searching and the ache in his back and knees from bending so much for that. He hopefully wasn't going to add another case to the never shrinking cold case files.

The drive to the office had Tony thinking of Alice's career. With everyone saying how much she enjoyed her work he never thought she'd have such a huge collection of things for a house she didn't own. Planning for a dream house was not something someone whose main focus was just in being in the middle of a war zone.

"Abby," Tony greeted holding up the evidence reaching for the bags, "What did you get me?"

"A coded book. I'm hoping you have an idea how to figure it out."

"I'll get right on it. Oh, and since you've been busy let me tell you about the knife you found next to the body."

"You got blood or fingerprints?"

"No. Yes. Well, sort of. I found a smudge on the blade. From what I can tell it looks like someone moved the knife after the murder."

"Thanks, Abby."

Turning towards the elevator Tony let out a sigh. The case was finally starting to open up. Alice had seemed like a normal person, but there was a secret that she had buried. Now he had to do whatever he could to find out that secret.

Walking into the bullpen Tony slowed down as he approached his desk. A uniformed man was standing in the middle of the desks calmly staring at the news feed on the monitor as if he had no idea anyone was around him.

"Can I help you..." Tony asked leaving a blank for the man to introduce himself.

The man turned to him a small smile playing on his lips. It was an odd sight to see. A military man, even one as young as this one was, greeting someone with such a carefree and open smile was unheard of.

Then beautiful green eyes locked with Tony's and it felt like all the breath was knocked out of him. They looked so bright and kind and... How could someone in a uniform look that... innocent?

Clearing his throat the Special Agent looked away for a second trying to knock the thoughts from his mind. It never worked well when he flirted with males in the military. Okay, so he only tried once, but that was enough.

The younger man seemed completely unaware of Tony's internal struggle. Which was good. Things would get awkward if he knew that Tony thought his lips would look amazing around his cock.

"Master Sergeant Timothy McGee," the Marine greeted, "I'm looking for Special Agent Gibbs."

"Why?" Tony questioned curiously.

"I heard that he was working on... I mean... Alice..."

"You were friends were Alice Atwell?"

"We were friends. It was a new friendship, but we... She had this way about her that made you open up to her without thinking about it."

Seeing the sadness creep into the man's eyes Tony lead him upstairs into one of the conference rooms. After getting the Marine some coffee that Gibbs would be proud of the pair sat there in silence. Tony wanted to give the man enough time to get a hold of his emotions once more.

"Sorry," the man said staring at his coffee, "Alice was the first person that I became friends with that I didn't work closely with in years."

"She sounds special," Tony mentioned nodding his head.

"She was. I remember being introduced to her by this man saying we were the only two soldiers he knew that always saw the good in people no matter what. It was nice to meet someone else like that."

"Can you think of any reason why anyone would want to kill her? Any new relationships that ended badly?"

"Not that I know of. She had been stuck in her head a little more than normally lately. I think she was ready for a change. Or my rambling on about wanting to marry and have kids had finally made her think about it herself."

"You think she was ready to settle down and move up in the rankings?"

"It's possible She had been acting strangely recently. But she had been wanting me to teach her some skills so I thought she was ready to do something else with her career."

"What did she want you to teach her?"

"Coding and languages. She was really into learning..."

McGee trailed off staring at the wall. It looked like he had just figured out something that was troubling him. Tony was almost positive that he knew what it was, but based off that look he gave the younger man enough time to put the pieces together himself.

"You found a code, didn't you?" McGee questioned softly, "Something had happened to her or she saw something or... And she had to hide whatever it was so she could figure it out. Someone knew she knew and they killed her, didn't they?"

"We don't have all the evidence yet," Tony supplied instead of answering.

"Let me help."

"Master Sergeant McGee..."

"If she was writing in the codes I taught her than I might be able to work them but faster than whoever is trying to crack the codes. You'll be able to catch him sooner."

Staring into the soulful eyes Tony's brain told him everything that was wrong with that plan. Everything pointed towards him telling the man no and going about the rest of the investigation. Never let it be said that he took the easy way though.

"I'll talk to my boss," Tony answered standing up, "But I make no promises."

"Thank you, Agent DiNozzo," McGee smiled gently reaching out to shake his hand.

"Call me Tony."

"Thank you, Tony. And please call me Tim."


	3. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.

Turning into Abby's lab Tony opened his mouth to announce himself only to freeze. Abby was laughing happily while Tim sat by the computer a light flush to his cheeks from whatever it was she said. He looked so sweet and innocent and Tony wanted to devour him.

It had been two days since the Atwell case had come across the team. That meant that McGee had been in his life for two day. Something that was both a blessing and curse. He wasn't sure what he did to deserve being punished, but he was getting it.

Tony was surprised that Gibbs had said yes to having the younger man around. At least he was confused by it until the first time he saw the Marine with Abby. She looked like she was about to pounce and eat the man alive. Not that he was much better himself.

Tim wasn't helping their imagination at all. He seemed to be trying to figure out what was appropriate to wear to the office. Today it was a pair of black slacks that hugged his amazing ass and a white shirt with a leather jacket that looked buttery soft. Tony wasn't sure if he preferred it or the uniform on him.

All the agent knew was no matter what he was wearing he wanted to strip the Marine down and hear all the noises he longed for. He was actually a little glad McGee was down in the lab. If he was in the bullpen Tony would never be able to get any work done.

Not that he was getting any work done anyway. Even with all that he had found out about Alice the team didn't have much to go on. It seemed as if no one ever looked past who she wanted them to see. Except for McGee. He was slightly less in the dark than everyone else.

Alice obviously didn't want anyone to know that she had changed. Maybe it was because she wasn't sure about those changes or because she had something she wanted to do first. Tony wasn't really sure which one was just yet. He wasn't sure the investigation would reveal it either.

Right now finding out her career change was the least of their worries. What was important was decoding the notes that she left behind. If they were connected that was all the better. Which brought him back to why Gibbs had sent him down in the first place.

"Tony," Tim greeted his blush getting dark while Abby laughed louder, "Umm… You're here for an update. Right? I mean… Of course you are. Why else would you be? Update...Abby?"

Tony looked over at the woman only to see her green eyes sparkling dangerously. He couldn't tell if she knew that he liked the younger man or if she was lost in whatever fantasy she had come up with. He wondered if hers were on a similar note as his.

He wouldn't actually be all that surprised if they were. Though she was a little kinkier than him or so their sex story nights had lead him to believe. There were a handful of stories that he would like to try out and McGee would be the perfect person to act them out with.

"We have the first two paragraphs figured out," Abby spoke spinning towards the computer, "Each paragraph has a different way it's coded so we have to do this one at a time."

"Anything we can work with yet?" Tony questioned looking between the two of them.

"A location," McGee jumped in holding out a piece of paper, "There isn't much in the note, but I was hoping that maybe we could go there and check it out together?"

Large green eyes turned to Tony causing his heart to melt slightly. He never thought that a military man would be able to pull off a puppy dog pout but it seemed McGee wanted to prove him wrong. He wondered what else the man was hiding.

"You want to come with me?" Tony questioned cocking any eyebrow, "You think you're up for it?"

"I think I can handle it. It can't be as bad as some of the places I've been," Tim answered his voice growing soft with each word.

Abby and Tony shared a look at the younger man's tone. He sounded so different than he normally did. So haunted. It was absolutely heartbreaking to hear. Though knowing he was a Marine he really shouldn't have been surprised by that.

"Are you abandoning me, Timmy?" Abby pouted knocking the man for his thoughts.

"Sorry, Abby," McGee said looking at her, "I just need to stretch my legs. I haven't really been stuck behind a computer since school."

"Really? With your degrees I thought you'd be more behind the scene?"

"I was at first. For awhile at least, but I always got a little bored doing the same thing over and over. I talked to my C.O. and convinced him that I'd work well outside of the lab. I haven't looked back. Please, Agent Di… Tony. I'm going crazy."

A sigh fell from Tony's lips knowing that he was going to regret his action. He could always say that he had to ask Gibbs and get out of it that way. If he was lucky Abby would go along with it instead of calling him out on his lie.

Still, he could just bring the man along with him and get to know him a little better. It wasn't going to go anywhere, but at least he could learn something that made him unattractive. Maybe. Or convince him to make-out a little. He wasn't picky.

"Alright," Tony sighed his brain yelling about how stupid he was, "You can come."

The younger man sent Tony an almost blinding smile. The agent's heart sped up in his chest causing his to curse at himself once more. He should be putting distance between him and the Marine. Instead he was bringing him closer and he didn't know why.

He had admitted that he had a crush on Tim. It wasn't that big of a deal. Tony had had crushes on men before. Hell, he had had sex with men before. They seemed to be something different than McGee though. It was almost as if the man was in a category all by himself.

Feeling a hand on his shoulder Tony turned towards it only to find Abby smirking at him. Cocking her head to the side she did a little shake letting him know that she knew exactly what he was thinking. If he had more time he would talk to her about it. See if she had any plans.

"Tony, is everything okay?" Tim asked his voice gentle.

"Yeah," Tony answered straightening his back, "You ready?"

"Lead the way, Special Agent."

Tony felt his dick twitch in his pants hearing the younger man's words. Oh the fun things they would be able to do if they did end up in bed together. No, Tony, don't think about that. He had a case to focus on and that was exactly what he was going to do.

Going down to the cars Tony took the time to clear his mind. McGee was only around to find out what had happened to his friend. He was not there to be the focus of his perverted little fantasies. No matter how much fun he thought they'd be.

"Shouldn't you have gone back to your actual job by now, Master Sergeant McGee?" Tony asked not being able to hold back his teasing tone.

"I started my two weeks leave the other day," McGee nodded looking between the agent and his hands, "I actually got off the plane and headed right over to NCIS."

Tony looked over at the younger man at that. He knew that McGee had said that he was friendly with Alice, but there was something about the way he acted when he thought about her. He was definitely hiding something. Tony just wasn't sure what it was.

Maybe that was why Gibbs had wanted to keep him as part of the investigation. There was a chance that was Marine was there to make sure the team didn't find any clues to point to him. Tony doubted that was the case, but he couldn't look past it without any evidence.

Still, the blond was hiding something and Tony had to find out what it was. That would be a good reason to give to Gibbs when he found out that he brought McGee out into the field. At least, it would be if he got the man to open up.

"How long had you known Alice?" Tony questioned hoping he didn't sound like he was conducting an interrogation.

"A little less than a year I believe," Tim supplied staring out the window.

"You met in Afghanistan?"

"No, I'm sorry. I can't exactly tell you all the details of how she and I met."

"Classified information? Really? I thought she didn't work on anything like that?"

Green eyes darted towards Tony for a second before looking away again. It looked as if the younger man was arguing with himself about what he could talk about. Time knew that whatever he said could possibly have an answer for whatever had happened to his friend.

"McGee," Tony said firmly, "If you know anything that could help with the case you have to tell me."

Instead of saying anything the Marine continued to sit there silently. A part of Tony wanted to pull the car over and demand answers. As soon as he thought that he realized that they were at the building McGee had discovered in the notebook.

By the time the agent had pulled the car over and shut it off Tim was out of the car and halfway to the building. Letting out a loud groan Tony climbed out and took off running to him. It was obvious that the younger man was attempted to run away from the conversation.

"Look, McGee..." Tony attempted to say.

"It looks like these are the only two exits," McGee started speaking over him, "There aren't any cars around but ours so I doubt that there's anyone inside. If there is we'll have a better chance of taking them down if one of us goes up and checks out the inside of the building."

Tony opened his mouth to argue with the blond only to notice that he was suddenly holding a gun. It shouldn't be all that surprising since the man was in the military, but it still made the older man reach for his own gun in defense.

Suddenly Tony wasn't all that sure about who Tim was. He had been so sure that the Marine was just another good guy that wanted to solve his friends murder. Now the agent wasn't all that positive that he was the person he wanted people to know.

"The building doesn't look all that safe," Tony stated carefully watching the man for a reaction.

"I've seen worse," McGee shrugged calmly, "I've had to be perched on worse looking things before."

"Wait… You're a sniper?"

"I'll go up and see if there's anyone inside."

Without another word the Marine turned and began to make his way to the fire escape. For the first time since he met the younger man he could see where that was true. He no longer looked like an innocent man, but a war hardened soldier.

It was so odd to watch the man take on a different persona. The man in front of him was to the one he saw laughing with Abby or stuttering out a greeting whenever he saw Tony. If he wasn't a suspect in the case he would find it attractive.

Watching the younger man quietly walk up the stairs Tony let his mind wonder over the case. In an odd way there was a chance that McGee made sense as a killer. That was the last thing that he thought he'd use to describe the blond when he first saw him.

Still, listening to him talk about Alice was interesting. It was as if he was remembering something. Maybe it had something to do with why she was killed. Or maybe they had been in a relationship that he didn't want anyone to know about.

In the end it didn't matter what his reasoning was. He was hiding something about the case and Tony was going to have to tell Gibbs about it. Three was a very good chance that the two Marine's were going to have a rather long talk in the future.

Tony really hoped that the younger man had a damn good excuse for not telling them what he knew. Not that that was going to help hims when it came to Gibbs. No matter what he said to the senior agent was going to be completely pissed.

"I don't think anyone's inside," Tin sighed jogged up to him, "There is a lot of tables and boxes in there. I really doubt that this place is as abandoned as it looks."

"Let's take a look," Tony agreed ignoring his voice of reason once more.

The agent couldn't lie and say there was no reason for him not to trust McGee, but there was something about him. Kate's voice suddenly echoed in his head telling him to think with his upstairs brain. A fleeting something came to his lips when he thought of the woman.

It was times like now that he wished he had her around. She would have known what to do. Or she would have already stopped the situation before it had gotten this far. He really did miss how Kate always knew what she was doing.

Taking a deep breath Tony shook his head telling himself to focus once more. He was about to go into a dangerous situation with someone that he wasn't sure that he could completely trust. He needed to be on his toes if he wanted to make it out alive.

The two men moved quietly along the exterior of the building until they were at the front door. Checking the knob to see if it was locked he found himself nodding his head to the Marine before tossing the door open. As they made their way through the building he sighed knowing that McGee had told the truth.

"No one's home," Tony called through the building putting his gun away.

"No," Tim agreed stopping at one of the tables, "Oh, what were you into, Alice?"

That right there told Tony that the blond probably wasn't completely aware of what happened to cause Alice's murder, but he still knew something. That meant that he should have told him or Abby whatever it was. There was no such thing as something little in a murder investigation.

A sigh fell from Tony's lips as he began to go through the files on the table and taking a handful of pictures. The case was still picking up steam, but something told him it would stall out if McGee didn't talk about whatever he was hiding.

"You're a sniper?" Tony asked his eyes darting towards the other man.

"Tony," Tim tried before stopping and taking a deep breath, "Yes, I am a trained sniper. Please, stop asking me questions about that."

"Why? I mean, I understand that..."

Suddenly the Marine spun towards Tony looking every bit as scary as a Marine should. Without thinking the agent let his hand fall to his gun. In the back of his mind he knew that McGee wasn't a threat, but he still felt cautious.

"Don't tell me you _understand_ , Tony," McGee practically growled out, "You don't understand anything."

"Then tell me," Tony offered calmly hoping to finally get the man to talk, "I've been told I'm a good listener."

"What are you...Are you interrogating me? Do you think I had something to do with Alice's murder?"

"I think there's something you're not telling me about Alice. You need to tell me what you're hiding, Tim."

The younger man opened his mouth to say something only to be but off by the sound of car doors slamming shut. Both men turned towards the door as multiple voices started to come through. Nodding his head to the younger man both of them took cover behind the boxes.

Tony took his phone out and sent a text to Ziva and Bishop calling for backup just as almost a dozen men walked into the building. Cursing to himself Tony looked over at Tim only to see him moving towards the men.

The agent opened his mouth to call him back only to remember that he couldn't talk. He couldn't wait for backup to come so he could finally yell at McGee like he wanted to. The man was a Marine! A Master Sergeant on top of that! Shouldn't he...Wait a minute…

"Master Gunnery Sergeant Nicholas McCoy," McGee said calmly walking out from his hiding spot, "Last I saw you, _Sir_ , you were in a firefight in Sudan. No longer missing in action?"

"McGee," one of the newly arrived men snarled, "I though you and that little whore would be dead by now. Let me rectify that."


	4. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.
> 
> I know this one is really short, but I promise the next one will be longer. ^_^

"Did you even have a plan?" Tony yelled over the gunfire, "Because they kind of out number us!"

McGee glared at the agent before moving to fire at the bad guys. He hadn't bothered to say anything since the gunfire had started. It was either because he was focused on making sure neither of them died or because a supposed M.I.A. Marine was in front of them.

Tony couldn't exactly blame him for not talking. It wasn't the kind of situation that came easy to anyone. Though now it was pretty easy to see what Alice had been working on. An M.I.A. Marine being stateside was not a good thing.

Based off what he had seen in the files it looked like that Master Gunnery Sergeant had started to work with the enemies. He had sold them state secrets and in return got… Well, Tony wasn't exactly sure what he got yet, but he had to have gotten something. Right?

It always turned his stomach thinking about how easy it was for some people to turn against everything they fought for. For what? A little bit of money? How could anyone think that money was worth more than human lives?

Standing up Tony took down one of the men before falling back down. He had no idea how a case that had seemed dead in the water had turned into this. It looked as if Alice had stumbled onto something that was bigger than she thought.

Or maybe it was exactly what she had thought. Alice had hidden the evidence she had found in a way that made it difficult to discover. If it wasn't for Tony than the book probably wouldn't have been found. Then there was the fact that a code expect like McGee was having a hard time cracking it.

It was pretty clear that Alice had been chasing whomever this Nicholas McCoy was. What a Corporal was doing investigating a case of possible treason was beyond him. She should have gone to someone. Unless she was afraid of who was in on the crime.

Was it possible that the woman had thought McGee was in on it? He had said that the two of them were friends so she should have gone to him. Instead she had used him to learn how to write a code. Why didn't she talk to him?

It was possible that she had known that Tim and Nicholas knew each other. Tony wasn't exactly sure how the two Marines knew each other, but based on the way McGee had practically spat out the word 'sir' it was not a friendship. At least, it wasn't anymore.

McGee had looked betrayed seeing the other Marine. At one point in time the two men had been friends. That would be a very good reason to not confine in the blond. Especially if she thought that McGee would react badly to hearing that news about his friend.

Tony made a mental note to figure out exactly what their relationship was. There was something there that made no sense to the agent. All he knew was that the longer he spent time with Tim the more he wanted to force the man to answer his questions.

Looking over at the blond once more he saw the man take down one of the men himself. As he went back down Tony saw his face drop. For a second he looked heartbroken. There was something huge happening in the man's head.

A part of the older man wanted to comfort the man. An even larger part of him wanted to know what he was thinking. It obviously had something to do with the case. It was actually starting to get annoying thinking about everything he wasn't saying.

Taking a deep breath Tony made his way over to the other man. Then younger man barely spared him a glance as he sot into the crowd once more. When he was crouched down once more Tony pushed him slightly. It was enough to get the man to look at him.

"Who is that?" Tony questioned taking down a suspect who was trying to sneak up on them.

"Master Gunnery Sergeant Nicholas McCoy," McGee answered his voice calm despite the situation.

"Yeah, I've gathered that. You kind of announced it to the world! Who is he to you?"

"We're getting shot at. Is right now the best time to be asking me questions?"

"You've been hiding something since you appeared by my desk. Start telling me what's going on."

"I don't know what's going on. If you can't tell they're shooting at me too."

"Then tell me who that McCoy guy is to you. How do you know him?"

Shaking his head McGee stood up and took down another suspect. They had been able to take some of the men down but with how the Marine dropped his gun to his side Tony knew that he had run out of bullets. Checking his number of bullets he saw that he only had two left himself.

Tony turned towards the younger man only to see how defeated he looked. It was not the kind of look that he ever thought would be on the Marine's face. He was in the middle of a gunfight and he had just given up for whatever reason.

It made no sense to Tony that he would just give up. From the little that he knew about the blond he was sure that he was a fighter. Giving up was not in him. No, there was something about the McCoy guy that obviously brought out the worst.

"I'm almost out," Tony stated putting his gun down.

"I figured," McGee sighed, "You need to get out of here and stop Nicky. I'll find you a way out."

Hazel eyes stared at McGee in shock. The man hadn't bothered to quit staring at his hands. What was going on in that man's head that he thought that was a good idea? Wait… Had the younger man really just called the man shooting at them Nicky?"

Tony's mind suddenly working in overtime. The reason Alice didn't go to Tim with the information. Why he looked so heartbroken and angry seeing the man. The two of them had a much deeper relationship than he had thought.

"Tim," Tony tried to say.

"Take him down," Tim repeated finally staring into his eyes.

"You two were a couple, weren't you?"

"NCIS!" Gibbs yelled breaking through the front door, "Put your weapons down!"

Yelling erupted behind them as the rest of the team took down the shooters. Tony couldn't pull his eyes away from Tim's though. Even now that they weren't going to be killed he looked horrible. There was no other explanation other than the fact that they had been a couple.

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs barked causing Tony to jerk back.

"We're good, Boss," Tony called back forcing McGee to stand up with him.

"What the hell is going on and who is that?"

Before Tony could answer Tim took a step forward. Instantly icy blue eyes were locked on green. The two Marine's stared each other down before the silver haired man wrapped a hand around the younger man's shoulder leading him back to the cars.

Tony followed them hoping that something more was said. He hated when there were unanswered questions and right now the blond was the only one that had some of the answers. He wanted to be there for that.

"Catch a ride with the girls," Gibbs ordered when they got to the cars.

"Boss?" Tony questioned confused.

When the older agent didn't bother saying anything else Tony nodded his head and began to leave. He couldn't tell if the man was angry how things ended up to just angry at him. Either way it was not the best thing for him.

Tony looked at Tim only to have the younger man climb into the car silently causing him to sigh. It was more than a little frustrating having the man walk away without answering his question once more. Maybe it was a Marine thing. All Tony knew was Gibbs would get him to talk.


	5. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.

Tony stared at McGee through the two-way mirror. The younger man sat there calmly as if it was an everyday occurrence. Which it might be. Now that the agent had time to stop and think he could admit that he had no idea who Timothy McGee was.

He played back every conversation that the two of them had and realized that the man never answered a question directly. Maybe that was part of his training. It was a possibility. There were a lot of things that a Marine would have to keep hidden. Especially a Master Sergeant.

A sigh fell from his lips as he thought. There was a large part of him that wanted Gibbs to walk into the interrogation room before he did. Tony found himself a little more than pissed off by the whole thing. He was the investigator not McGee.

Taking a deep breath Tony turned away from the mirror. He didn't know why, but his emotions were playing with him. They had been ever since Alice's case had crossed across their desks. Actually, it had been going on for longer than that if he was honest with himself.

McGee was just a catalyst for whatever had been going on with him. The problem was Tony had no idea what his problem was. He had tried to figure it out a handful of times but he never could. All it did was make him want to punch a hole in the wall.

He let out a frustrated sound as his head started to pound. All this time he hadn't found any answers to the questions that plagued him and that had lead him to act like a complete idiot around McGee and almost got them both killed.

Every part of him had said that letting McGee come with him was a bad idea and he ignored it. One of the biggest lessons that Gibbs had taught the team was to always follow your instincts. He threw that right out the door for what?

Tony had no idea what was going on with him. He was actually acting worse than he did when he was a Probie. How could one little thing cause him to go completely insane? Better question though was how was he supposed to get out of his funk.

"What happened out there?" Gibbs questioned causing the younger agent to jump and spin around.

"Boss!" Tony gasped before shaking his head, "You'll have to teach me how to do that one day."

The blue eyes stared at Tony for a long moment causing him to shift his weight from one foot to the other. It always surprised him when someone didn't flinch or break under his Boss's stare. The man was just terrifying when he wanted to be. Which was most times.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs warned with a glare.

"I don't know, Boss," Tony shook his head, "It was like McGee went..."

The head slap came out of nowhere. Which was surprising since he had been expecting it since Gibbs busted into the warehouse. He deserved it for acting stupid. Still, he hated whenever he did something so stupid and wrong that he got one.

"I don't care about McGee right now," Gibbs glared angrily, "Except for you telling me why he was there."

"He found the address in Alice's book code," Tony sighed shrugging his shoulders, "He wanted to stretch his legs."

"And you thought that was a good idea? That it was your call?"

"I… I should have come to you, Boss. I know that I should have talked to you first. I wasn't thinking."

A sigh fell from Gibbs lips at Tony's words. The younger man hated knowing that he had disappointed his boss. He tried so hard not to do that, but he was still learning. It was one of the reasons that he was glad he wasn't the one in charge of everything.

"Boss," Tony started finally getting the nerve to ask the thing that had been bugging him, "Why did you let McGee stay and help us? Do you know him or something?"

Instead of saying anything the silver haired man took a drink of his coffee and left the room. Nodding his head Tony turned towards the window waiting for Gibbs to walk through the door of interrogation and do what he did best. Get the guy to talk.

"Master Sergeant Timothy McGee," Gibbs said dropping a file onto the table, "Your family has been in the Marine Corp. for a long time."

"We have. Family business," McGee nodded his head, "If you're male and a McGee you're a Marine. But you know that, Agent Gibbs."

"That's what I've heard. You wanted to follow your Father's footsteps?"

"Didn't have a choice. You joined or you were disowned."

Tony stared at the young Marine in shock. He didn't get along with his Father, but he had been the one to walk away. Not his old him. Based off the way Gibbs shoulders tightened he had expected the answer, but the parent in him still hated the answer.

"Your Father was always a hardass," Gibbs continued with a slight smirk before getting serious, "You have two degrees. A Bachelor of Science degree in biomedical engineering from John Hopkins University and a Master of Science degree in computer forensics from MIT. Those are pretty impressive. Do you still use those degrees?"

"Gibbs," McGee tried to start.

"Don't tell me it's classified. I've got a dead Corporal in the morgue and there was a shoot out that almost got my man killed!"

Green eyes dropped to the desk at the mention of the shoot out. It seemed as if McGee didn't like what had happened in the warehouse either. Which was saying something since the man had been more than willing to sacrifice himself for Tony.

That brought an interesting thought to Tony. The Marine had been about to let himself be killed and his last request had been for Tony to nail McCoy. He didn't care what happened to him. All he wanted was for the bad guy to pay for his crime.

At least, that was one way to look at it. The other way was McGee had wanted the other man hurt and arresting him was the best idea he had. Or he hoped they ended up in another shoot out and McCoy got killed. Either way he was stopped.

Taking out his phone Tony sent a message to Ziva telling her and Bishop to meet him. It had been a few hours since the man had been brought in so the team should have some info. Which he would know if he had been with them instead of watching McGee.

Tony felt as if it was his fault that things went down the way they did. He was the Special Agent. He had been the one to call the shots and in doing so almost got them killed. It was stupid and completely avoidable if he had just stopped to think before acting.

"I know your Father," Gibbs spoke after a moment, "He always said you were nothing like him. Prove to me you aren't."

"Agent Gibbs," Tim started once more, "I'll tell you everything I think can help with Alice, but that's all I can do. I won't put anyone in danger. And please, don't try to use my Father against me. I hate him more than you ever could, but I'll do what's right for my people. That's all I can do."

"Even if that means protecting the killer?"

"If it gets to that point I know you'll go above me or whatever you have to get the suspect. You solve the case. I protect my people."

Gibbs stared at McGee before nodding his head. At the very least McGee had just earned the man's respect. The silver haired man knew that McGee was caught in a tough situation. He wanted to find Alice's killer without putting innocent Marine's in danger.

"Tony," Bishop greeted walking into the room with Ziva, "How's it going?"

"Just starting," Tony supplied looking at the women, "What do you guys have on McCoy?"

"The man went missing during an operation in Sudan," Ziva started looking between Tony and the interrogation room.

"That's how far that went," Bishop jumped in shaking her head, "It was all classified."

"Whatever happened Alice found out and McGee knows too," Tony agreed with a nod, "Did you find any connection between Tim and him?"

The woman shared a look obviously not knowing exactly how to say what they knew. It was odd for them to do that with him. With Gibbs the three of them did it all the time, but there had never been a reason for them not to be able to share something.

"What?" Tony asked confused, "What aren't you telling me?"

"You and McGee..." Bishop tried to start before looking away.

"McGee and me? There is no McGee and me. What do you two think if going on here?"

"We do not know," Ziva answered after a pregnant pause, "But you have been acting very strangely since he appeared."

"Well, nothing is going on between us," Tony reiterated firmly, "So, what was McGee and McCoy's relationship?"

"Nicolas McCoy was my training officer," McGee answered both Tony and Gibbs question.

Spinning around Tony watched McGee shift slightly. The younger man looked a little ashamed. It was all feeding into Tony's thoughts that the two Marine's had been in a relationship. Why did that make him feel a little sick to his stomach?

"You worked closely together?" Gibbs questioned looking between McGee and the file.

"Yes, all of my career."

"Most Marine's can't say that. Why did you work together for so long?"

"We were good at what we did. Worked together very well. The higher ups used to say we were reading each others minds."

"It grew into something more, didn't it?"

McGee looked away his shoulders slumping. He looked so depressed thinking of McCoy. Whatever their relationship was it meant a lot more to Tim than it did to McCoy. Tony really was starting to wish that he hadn't missed shooting the man.

"He… It meant everything to me," Tim spied his voice suddenly dropping to a whisper, "I thought that Nicky and I would have a future together. It would be hard given our careers, but he was worth that."

Tears had gathered in Tim's eyes as he spoke. He had loved McCoy more than Tony had thought. How could someone make another person fall in love with them and then fake their own death? He simply decided to abandon the man that he was supposed to love.

It also explained why Tim had acted so oddly when they were in the warehouse. He had been so shocked seeing the supposed dead man alive. Tony was almost positive that McGee had reacted a hell of a lot better seeing the man he loved standing in front of him.

A soft sigh slipped from Tony as he took in the younger man. It was not fair to the Marine to have someone break his heart like that. If Alice knew about their relationship than it was no wonder that she decided not to tell McGee what was going down.

Looking at Gibbs the man could tell that he felt for the other Marine. He might not like how things went down, but he did understand what had been going on in the blond's head. Or maybe it was the lock of thinking on his part that caused it.

In the end it didn't matter. They still had to know what had transpired in Sudan and if McCoy was the one that killed Alice of if it was someone else. It was odd to think, but maybe the two things hadn't been connected yet by the Corporal.

Based on how McGee had reacted seeing his former lover he could have handled the news that he was still alive. A handful of questions had been answered by McGee, but Tony could feel that there was still something else they were missing.

"Tell me what happened in Sudan," Gibbs ordered once McGee was in control of himself again.

"I can't tell you the details," McGee told the silver haired man, "The most I can say is that if ended very badly. Twenty soldiers went in but only four came back. None of us were uninjured."

"Alice was there."

"Alice, Nicky, and I were all there. I can't go into anymore than that. I'm sorry, Agent Gibbs."

Nodding his head Gibbs stood up and left the room closing the door behind him. Tony wanted to go into the interrogation room, but he knew that Gibbs wasn't done with the younger man just yet. No, he had a trick up his sleeve that he had yet to use.

"Do you think he's telling the truth?" Bishop asked her voice soft.

"I think he's not being totally honest," Tony sighed crossing his arms, "He's still holding something back. I don't know what it is though, but no. I don't think he's connected to the murder."

"You're about to find out," Gibbs commanded opening the door, "Get in there, Tony."

"Boss?"

"Go."

Looking out at McGee he saw the younger man. He was sitting there taking a few deep breaths. It looked like he was a few minutes away from breaking down completely. Not that Tony could blame him. He had just learned that his supposedly dead lover might have killed his friend.

To say that Tim was having a bad day was an understatement. Something that Tony was going to be making worse before making it better. It was odd to think that he actually did want to make the man feel better. He really did need to get this under control.

Bishop and Ziva had obviously noticed that Tony felt something for the younger man. Which meant that Gibbs knew how he felt and he as going to use that with McGee. Wait… Did that mean that Tim felt something for him as well?

Shaking his head Tony left the observation room and went to the elevator. McGee had been in the interrogation room for awhile and now that he was feeling the way he did it felt like the perfect time for a cup of tea. Ducky would be able to help.

Tony was bouncing on his feet by the time he got to the morgue. He didn't actually want to think too hard about how he was acting right before he was forced to talk to the man. The last thing he needed was an agent crushing on him right now.

"Ah, Mr. DiNozzo," Ducky greeted with a smile, "How can I help you?"

"How about a cup of your most soothing tea?" Tony requested hopefully.

"Having a stressful day, dear boy? From what I heard you and Mr. McGee caught a little trouble. Were either of you injured?"

"Not physically, but McGee got the shock of his life."

"Oh? I guess the tea is for him then?"

"It is. The man shooting at us was McGee's training officer and his boyfriend."

"Oh dear. Poor boy. The man turned traitor?"

"Not just turned traitor. He faked his own death. Hey, do you know anything about McGee's Father? It seems like he and Gibbs knew each other."

Ducky fell silent at that. He looked so saddened by what was happening to McGee, but he wasn't going talk about what Gibbs did and didn't know. Silently he handed Tony a cup of tea and patter him on the shoulder. Smiling slightly the agent went back to the elevator and up to the interrogation room.

"Hey," Tony smiled to McGee before placing the tea down, "I hope you like tea."

"I do," Tim spoke wrapping his hands around the warm cup, "Thank you."

Taking a deep breath Tony sat across from the younger man. The green eyes flicked between the tea and DiNozzo before finally falling to the table. He knew exactly why the agent was there. Tony wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

"I don't know how else I can help you," McGee finally spoke.

"Tell me how you and Alice met," Tony supplied easily.

"She was put on a team. It was just an assignment. We got close afterward."

"The Sudan assignment? You and her were two of the people that came out alive? I thought you said you and her weren't friends because of work?"

"We knew each other from work. We weren't friends for the simple fact we always saw each other. And yes, it was the Sudan assignment. I can't tell you anything, Tony."

"Tim, Alice is dead and a man you thought had been killed is down in holding. They have a connection. One that you could possibly know. You need to tell me everything you can."

"I don't know..."

"You know something. You were friends with Alice and dating McCoy."

"I know what they mean to me!"

At Tim's yell Tony fell silent. He knew that he was playing with fire pushing the young Marine, but it had to be done. Though he was still wondering why Gibbs had wanted him to be the one that got the man to finally open up.

"I'm sorry," Tim sighed before taking a sip of his tea, "I understand why you're doing this, bu I can't help you anymore than I already have. Not because I don't want to. Because this isn't the Nicky I knew and it isn't the Alice I knew either. I never thought he could do anything like this."

"You had no idea McCoy was capable of something like this?" Tony questioned softly.

"Not the Nicky I knew. He's the last person I would think could do this. I just… It's all wrong."

Nodding his head Tony looked at the two-way mirror knowing he hadn't gotten anything they didn't already know. It was then that a thought hit him like a ton of bricks. He really hoped he was wrong, but something said he wasn't.

"Was there something wrong with how things went down in Sudan?" Tony asked causing McGee's head to snap up.

"What do you mean?" McGee questioned his voice taking a serious tone.

"You've been in firefights before? Was that one different than the others you've been in?"

Tony watched the normally calm green eyes darken in anger. Okay, Tony was officially screwed because that should not be hot. Still, watching the younger man suddenly look like he was ready to fight anything and everything was a turn-on.

"That son of a bitch," Tim growled out.

"Tim?" Tony prompted when the man didn't continue.

"It was his Intel that brought us there. He was leading my team into a trap and got them killed."

Tony's eyes widened at that. He had thought that McCoy had done something unforgivable as setting his people up, but hearing how murderous the younger man sounded was surprising. He truly had never thought his lover was capable of all that he did.

The door opened a moment later revealing Gibbs. The silver haired man motioned with his head to get both of them to follow him. As they walked down the hallway Tony could feel Tim shaking with fury, but he had no idea what to do or say to help.

The three of them went into the bullpen joining Ziva, Bishop, and Abby. Instantly the goth had her arms thrown around McGee. The Marine froze for a second before melting into her arms searching for comfort.

Tony couldn't help feeling jealous of the two. They had just met and let was already like they were best friends. He wanted more then anything to be the one that McGee turned toward. You didn't always get what you wanted though.

"I heard what happened," Abby frowned pulling away from him, "I'm so sorry, Timmy."

"I can't believe it, Abby," Tim replied shaking his head, "How could he do it? So many people died because of him. Our brothers died because of him."

"He won't get away with it, Tim," Gibbs promised instantly, "He'll pay for what happened."

"How?"

"You and Abby decode that book. We need to know everything Alice did. Everyone else go through the files. I want everything on this son of a bitch."

Nodding her head Abby linked her arm with Tim's leading him through the bullpen and into the elevator. Tony watched them for a moment before going to his desk. In doing so though he missed the knowing look that crossed over his boss's face.


	6. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> As I write this I realize that there probably won't actually be any sex in it. I know. Odd for one of my stories, but it's just not there. Sorry if that's what you were hoping for!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.

Yawning loudly Tony made his way down to Abby's lab. He knew that the woman had left hours ago, as had practically everyone else. In truth, he wasn't completely sure why he was still there, but he knew that he wasn't the only one still working.

Abby had told him before she left that McGee had been refusing to walk away from the notebook since they got it. She had provided him with a steady supply of coffee, but he had ignored the food she brought. Seemed like they finally found someone that could tell Abby no.

All that information made Tony think. In the days that McGee had been with them he hadn't seen the younger man take a break. He was one hundred percent focused on the case and that precision like focus was probably not doing his mind or body any favors.

Now it was almost one o'clock in the morning and it was time for them both to take a break before they went crazy. It was odd to walk down to the Goth's office and not hear music shaking the walls. Though with how his head was pounding music was the last thing he wanted.

Getting to the lab door Tony looked into the area trying to find the Marine. It took him a moment but he finally found the man sitting at Abby's desk staring at nothing. For a moment the agent wasn't sure if Tim was awake or had fallen asleep with his eyes open.

Before Tony could move any closer the younger man stood up suddenly and began to pace the small room. He looked so lost as he moved. It made Tony want to wrap a blanket around him and cuddle him close making that look go away for good.

Tony had no idea what was going on in his head when it came to the younger man, but it was strong. The last time he had felt anything like this was when he met Jeanne. Something he still truly didn't like to think about if he could help it.

Even after all this time Tony loved the woman. Every once in awhile when his mind wonders the agent wondered what would happen if she came into his life once more. He wanted to be able to say that he had moved on, but he knew he'd do just about anything to get her back.

While what he felt for Tim wasn't even close to what he felt for Jeanne he knew that given the chance it could. That thought scared him more than he liked to think about. He just wasn't ready for anything too serious in his life at the moment.

At least that's what he told himself. He never realized how often he lied to himself. He had always thought that he was honest with himself, but now he was starting to rethink that. Maybe it was time for him to stop running away from himself.

That's all that made sense to him. He was running away from himself. How was that even possible? Was he truly so afraid of what he could be that was setting himself up for failure? Tony really hated whenever he started to analyze himself.

Though maybe it was time that he did. As much as it pained him to say he was tired. When he was younger he used to dream of the life he could have when he was an adult and he had stopped trying to gain that life after he got a successful career.

He had wanted to have a family by the time he was thirty. An age that had come and gone a few years back. For awhile he thought that Jeanne would be the person he could finally settle down with, but that ended so badly that he stopped thinking like that.

Now with Timothy McGee in front of him the thoughts were starting to trickle in again. He wanted the younger man. Though right then it might not be the best time to attempt to start anything. The man already had too much to deal with.

The problem with waiting though was Tim was a Marine. His career sent him overseas for months at a time. There was no guarantee that he was ever going to see the younger man again. If he didn't make a move now he'd probably never get the chance.

"Tim," Tony greeted walking into the office startling the younger man enough for him to reach for his gun, "Hey! It's just me. No need for a weapons discharge."

"Tony!" Tim gasped dropping his hands to his side, "I'm so sorry! I didn't… I wasn't… I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I should know better than to sneak up on an armed man. You doing okay?"

"Fine. I'm fine."

Sighing Tony took a step closer to the blond and placed a hand on his strong shoulders. Green eyes looked at Tony revealing that they were rimmed in red from tears he refused to shed. The whole sight broke the older man's heart to see. Someone like Tim should never look like that.

"Come on," Tony said leading the man towards the door, "I'll give you a ride to your place."

"I have work to do," Tim shook his head moving away from the older man.

"Tim..."

"I don't want to go home, Tony. I can't go home until I know why he… I need to put an end to this."

Seeing the younger man look so hurt Tony moved without thinking. Wrapping his arms around Tim he held him close. For a moment Tim made no movements and Tony was beginning to think he made a mistake. Then strong arms came around him holding him just as tightly.

The two men were the same height, but somehow Tim buried himself in the older man. A smile came to Tony's lips as he gently ran his hands over the man's back. He felt so much better in his arms than Tony could have ever thought. He never wanted to let go.

"Okay," Tony soothed gently, "How around we go to a diner I know? We both should probably eat something."

Tony waited for a moment before Tim finally nodded his head. Smiling slightly the older man motioned to the elevator. The men were silent as they made their way to Tony's car and then to the diner. It wasn't until they were in a booth with coffee in front of them that either of them spoke.

"Thank you," Tim finally said a sad smile on his lips, "You didn't have to do this for me."

"Maybe not," Tony shrugged calmly, "But I did it anyway. You're a good guy, Tim. It's no trouble."

A slight blush came to the younger man's cheeks at that. The sight made Tony's heart speed up. He looked so young and innocent. Oh how absolutely beautiful it would be to see just how dark he could make it and how far it spread over his body.

"Have you two decided what you want, Sweetheart?" the waitress asked walking up to their table.

The blush darkened ever so slightly causing Tony to smirk darkly. The blond was so responsive to a little teasing. It was almost too tempting not to see just how far he could be pushed before he decided it was time to push back.

"Tony," Tim sighed after they ordered.

"Don't," Tony shook his head, "Just let's have dinner or breakfast or whatever you want to call it."

"Just… Maybe we can do this again after the case is solved? I can't… Not with so many questions unanswered."

"I'd like that. For now just two people eating and hanging out. Nothing more."

A relived smiled came to the younger man's lips. Tony smiled back lifting his cup to drink down his coffee. For the first time that night the silence wasn't deafening and Tony couldn't be happier. He was finally getting someplace with Tim. Hopefully someplace good.

"So, do you know Gibbs?" Tony asked when their food was in front of them.

"Not personally," Tim shook his head, "I've heard a lot of him from my Father."

"Your Father a fan of how Gibbs operates?"

"No! My Father hates everything about how your boss operates. He's a very by the book type of guy. I won't even repeat the things he's said."

"Then why did you trust him?"

"Because he's the opposite of my Father. I know it's odd of me, but anyone that angers my Father that much can't be all bad."

"Bad relationship with your Father? Don't worry you're not the only one. My Dad and I don't get along either."

"I'm sorry about that. It's no fun having an absent father."

"No, it's not, but I haven't talked to my Father in awhile. At least not face to face. We get along better when we talk over the phone."

"I wish I had that option, but if I did I wouldn't be able to see my Mother or sister again."

"Your Father sounds like a bastard."

"He is, but I've gotten used to him so it rarely bothers me anymore."

Even with the younger man's attempt at comfort Tony wanted to go find his 'Father' and show him a thing or two. Getting lost in thought the agent jumped feeling a hand rest on his own. Looking from the hand to the blond he felt himself smile.

"That was not the most pleasant conversations," Tim joked with a weak smile.

"No, it wasn't," Tony replied with a slight huff, "Maybe avoiding talking about family is a good idea."

"Alright, what do we talk about?"

Tony opened his mouth to suggest something only to freeze. This wasn't like his normal dates where to spend maybe a few weeks with the person. He truly wanted things to work out with Tim and he needed to not mess things up.

"I'm not really used to this type of situation," Tony started with a sigh unconsciously taking his hand away from Tim's, "I don't normally do slow when it comes to dating."

"Oh," Tim muttered pulling his hand away as well, "I don't do one night stands, Tony."

"Good. Good. Because I don't want to do that with you."

"I don't… You're really starting to confuse me here."

Nodding his head Tony took a deep breath knowing he was making the situation worse. He had no real plan that he was working off though. At the moment he was just attempting to say how he felt. When did that become a foreign concept to him?

Though maybe a better question would be when did he quit being smooth? He was Tony DiNozzo for crying out loud. Dating was kind of like he superpower. He was not the type of person to get flustered like he was.

"This isn't a date, Tony," McGee spoke before Tony could, "You still have time. Just give me a warning. Okay?"

Staring into the calm green eyes Tony had no choice but to smile. It occurred to him that the two of them were so different. Tim knew exactly what he wanted and what he wasn't going to do on the way there. That was something that Tony had long given up on.

"You're a nice guy, Tim," Tony smiled with a shake of his head.

"I get that a lot," the younger man chuckled, "It usually doesn't end well for me."

"Yeah, not many people appreciate good guys anymore."

"Not many good guys are actually good guys. It's something Nicky always..."

The younger man's voice trailed off at the name of his lover. Or would ex-love be more appropriate at the point in time? Tony knew that it had been almost a year since Sudan so Tim was either finally ready to move on from mourning the loss of the man or he was still trying to come to terms with it.

None of that mattered though. Everything that Tim had been feeling must have been thrown in the air seeing the supposedly dead man. Tony did not envy the Marine for what happened to him, but he did want to find McCoy and show him exactly how he felt.

"I'm sorry," Tim sighed looking away, "I shouldn't..."

"It's okay," Tony said instantly with a wave of his hand, "I can't say I blame you for thinking about him."

"I don't want to think about him. I was just starting to think that I was ready to move on. Alice was trying to convince me to go on a date while we were on leave."

"You hadn't decided yet whether to go through with it or not?"

"No, I was… This was the first real time I had off without him that wasn't for recovery. I had wanted to see how I did the first few days alone before I started dating again."

"Have you gone back to your place since you got back?"

"No."

Shaking his head Tony put down enough money to cover their meal and a tip before making Tim stand up. The blond looked confused but he didn't bother to fight as they got back in Tony's car. Green eyes darted around the roads trying to figure out where they were going.

"Tony?" Tim questioned confused.

"You're taking me to your place?"

"No, I don't… I honestly don't think I have that much self-control. I'm taking you to the safest place I know."

Pulling up to Gibbs house the agent helped the Marine inside and down into the basement. Icy blue eyes looked up from the boat before Gibbs put what he was working on. The two Marine's made their ways upstairs leaving the agent to pour himself a drink.

A soft sigh escaped his lips as he downed the Bourbon. The alcohol burned going down his throat dragging his thoughts back to him. He knew he made the right choice bringing Tim here, but that didn't mean he didn't want to spend more alone time with the man.

Okay, so he had more control over himself than he lead the blond to believe but there was a good reason for that. Both men had admitted at least the basic level of being attracted to each other and if Tim had a bad dream and was seeking comfort… Well, Tony was smart enough not to put himself in that situation.

"Thought you'd come earlier," Gibbs spoke walking down the stairs.

"We grabbed some food first," Tony shrugged putting his glass down.

The older man nodded his head falling into his chair. He kept watching Tony as if he was waiting for something. Which wasn't all that surprising with how messy his mind was at the moment. He could use someone to talk about everything.

"It's all messed up, Boss," Tony shook his head, "I don't act like this. I'm never this."

"McGee brings out something in you," Gibbs said calmly.

"Yeah, but I don't get it. No one's made me feel like this since..."

"Jeanne. That was long time ago, DiNozzo."

"And I'm still the same guy, aren't I, Boss?"

"Maybe it's time to grow up."

Hazel eyes stared at the older man before nodding his head. His boss was right. For so long he had been the same person. Refusing to stop and think about who he is. He simply acted the same way he always did.

Now he had a real chance and he was still trying decide if he was going to change. That wasn't right. He knew that he was ready to make the change, but he was still afraid. Tony knew who he was. He didn't know who that guy was though.

Shaking his head he ran a hand through his hair. His mind was running ragged trying to come up with some new answers to questions that had been in his head for days. He already had all the answers to the questions though.

The headache that was already hurting his head just seemed to be getting worse as the thought about everything. As much as he wanted things to change he wasn't ready for what came after that change.

A calloused hand rested on Tony's shoulder causing him to look up. His boss gave him a slight smile causing the brown haired man to nod in appreciation. No matter what Tony decided to do he knew that his boss would have his back in the end.

"I think I'm going to head back to my place," Tony said standing up, "Thanks, Boss."

The older man nodded back at Tony before turning away and going back to his boat. Making his way upstairs the agent looked around for Tim even though he knew that the younger man was in the spare bedroom asleep. He had just hoped that he'd get one last look before he left.

Shaking his head at the childishness of the situation Tony climbed into his car and started his way home. As much as he disliked thinking about it there was a chance that both Gibbs and Tim were right. Trying to start any kind of relationship while they were working a case was not a good idea.

Tony had an inkling that there wasn't much left in the case before they finally found Alice's killer. Which meant that there wasn't much time left for him to figure out what he was going to do. Once everything was done he wasn't going to have anymore excuses.


	7. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> Warnings: Death, Sexual Fantasy talk, Violence. More things will be added as I write the story. If you think of anything you want warned tell me and I'll add it!
> 
> As I write this I realize that there probably won't actually be any sex in it. I know. Odd for one of my stories, but it's just not there. Sorry if that's what you were hoping for!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.
> 
> I think we should all be glad I'm not mean enough to leave this story on this chapter.

Tony ran a hand through his hair trying to resist the urge to bash his head into his desk. It had been three days since he and McGee busted into the warehouse and found all the evidence they needed along with a perfect suspect to boot.

The problem was none of it made sense. There were files filled with names and places that were in some kind of order that none of them could figure out. The worse part was that the team couldn't find any people by those names. There was no reason for the list.

A part of Tony thought that it having no real rhyme or reason meant that they had caught whatever it was before it started. A larger part of him said that they simply didn't understand what it was that the suspects were going to do.

Still, it didn't do anything to help them solve the crime. Something that wasn't just getting to Tony. Both Bishop and Ziva were snapping more often for no reason and Gibbs was on a warpath that had everyone jumping out of his way before they got sucked in.

At the moment in time Team Gibbs was not to be messed with. Which was actually not that uncommon of a thing for them. Though a week was pushing it. Tony knew that the Director wanted this case put behind them before he had anymore complaints about them.

In the end the thing that was getting to Tony though was that Gibbs hadn't talked to McCoy. He knew that going into the interrogation room without at least some of some of the answers than it was over before it even really began, but even that made Tony confused.

By now Gibbs could have made the Marine tell them everything he knew and more. There had to be a good reason for the older man to make McCoy sit in holding and think about what he as going to say Gibbs always had a reason for what he did.

Shaking his head the agent made his way down to grab some coffee for himself. There really was nothing that he could do when he was in the head space he was currently in. He needed a moment to clear his head before he did something to mess up the case.

"Tony," Tim greeted knocking the older man from his thoughts.

Spinning around Tony saw the Marine sitting on one of the benches with his own cup of coffee. Feeling his heart speed up slightly Tony sat next to the other man. It was really the first time he'd seen the blond since he dropped him off at Gibbs place.

It wasn't as if he had been avoiding the younger man, but he was avoiding Abby's lab. Every time Tony was in the same room with McGee he found himself thinking about what they could have instead of the case. He needed to focus.

That need though had caught the attention of his team. Gibbs understood easily enough since it was his rule that Tony was following. Bishop and Ziva, on the other hand, were watching him out of the corner of their eyes.

Which he knew meant that every time they saw Tim they were watching him as well. With that in mind he knew that the other man knew that there was something going on with them. Luckily the man hadn't tried to talk to the agent about it.

"Abby and I figured out..." Tim attempted to start before trailing off, "Absolutely nothing. The rest of Alice's notes were her guesses on what Nicky did. I'm sorry, Tony."

"Don't be sorry, Tim. If there's nothing there than there's nothing's there. Anyway, you're not the only one. There's a lot in those files and somehow absolutely nothing at the same time."

"What did… What did Nicky say?"

Looking over at the younger man Tony opened his mouth before shutting it once more. A confused look came to Tim's face as he waited for the answer. Okay, this was why Tony was happy he wasn't the boss. He hated explaining things.

"Tony?" Tim asked turning fully to the agent, "What is it?"

"We haven't talked to McCoy yet," Tony slowly said looking at his drink.

"Why not? Do you not think he has anything that can help us?"

"Tim, the guy faked his death. We want him to sit there and stew for awhile before we demand answers. That and we want to be able to throw him off his game by already having some of the answers already."

Licking his lips the Marine nodded his head before suddenly standing up. Tony stared after him for a moment wondering what the man was doing. He stood up when the man got halfway to the building still having no idea what he was thinking.

"What are you doing, McGee?" Tony questioned as they climbed into the elevator.

"I need to talk to him," Tim replied his voice completely void of emotion.

"Who?"

"Nicky."

Reaching out Tony shut down the elevator and spun the younger man to face him. McGee looked resolved in what he wanted to do, but that did nothing to make Tony feel better about it. Having the young Marine go talk to his ex would just end badly.

The agent couldn't imagine how Tim was dealing with everything, but he knew it couldn't be a good thing. The idea of having the two Marine's in the same room was just asking for trouble. Something that Gibbs would probably want.

Suddenly it made sense why the silver haired man left McCoy alone for so long. He hadn't been waiting for them to gather evidence to catch the suspect in his lies. No, he had been waiting for McGee to get up the nerve to want to question his ex himself.

If there was one person that would be able to get McCoy to talk it would be Tim. There was one problem with that though. The second Tim walked into that room it wouldn't just be McCoy that was vulnerable to being questioned.

Tim would be completely exposed to his ex too. Gibbs might think that it was a good idea and Tony could see exactly where he'd think that. At the same time though questioning the man could just as easily break Tim as it did McCoy.

That was the last thing that Tony wanted. The younger man was so strong. At least he had been so far. There was only so much a person could take before they broke. Tim had already been through so much. How much more could the man take?

"Tim," Tony tried to start.

"I can do this," Tim interrupted instantly.

"Doesn't mean you have to. This is a horrible idea and you know it."

"I can make him talk. I know how Nicky thinks. I'm the person for this and you know that. Tony, we have nothing so far. Nicky is the only person that can answer those questions."

"You have to be objective and you're still calling the man 'Nicky'. Come on, Tim. You can't tell me you're objective towards that man."

"What do you expect, Tony? I..."

Tim fell silent without finishing the sentence, but it wasn't hard to know where he was going with it. Tony didn't like thinking it, but he had to wonder what it would have been like if McCoy let Tim in on the secret.

There was a chance that Tim would have gone with his lover. If McCoy had just brought the younger man in on his plan there was a chance that things would be different. It actually scared Tony that that chance was there.

"You love him," Tony whispered hating the words, "Would you have gone with him if he had asked?"

"What?"

"You love him. Even now that you know what he did you love him. It's not that crazy to think that you might consider going with him if he had asked you."

Anger appeared in the green eyes as he took a step towards the agent. For a moment Tony was sure that the Marine was going to take a swing at him and he wouldn't have blamed the man. Then the man took a step back his shoulders sagging.

He looked so saddened by the question and Tony wasn't exactly happy about that. It meant that Tim had actually thought about it before and he still wasn't sure about what his answer was. That was the scary thing about love. It gave you the power to do things you never thought possible.

"I love Nicky," Tim sighed shaking his head, "I will always love him, Tony, but I don't think that I'd have gone with him. I'm not that person. I don't… My job is to protect people. My little sister always said that my life goal is to be one big brother to the world. I would never hurt anyone if I had my choice. I just want to protect. That's all."

Staring into the beautiful eyes Tony nodded his head in understanding. The blond was one of those few people that were truly good. It wasn't often that you met a pure soul like Tim. Especially one wearing a military uniform.

"I'm sorry, Tim," Tony offered softly, "I had to ask."

"I know," Tim smiled sadly, "I know you think this is a bad idea and a part of me agrees with you. I can't just leave it like this though. The man that I loved more than anything did these horrible things. He faked so much and I need to know what the truth is if I ever want to more on. Please, Tony, let me question Nicky. Let me put this behind me for good."

A bad feeling sat in Tony's stomach, but he knew exactly what he had to do. Reaching out Tony turned the elevator back on without saying a word. He wanted nothing more than to usher Tim out of the building and away from the situation.

It wasn't often that Tony felt over-protective over someone. Especially someone that could so obviously take care of himself like Tim could. That did nothing to stop Tony though. He wanted Tim to be safe and maybe the safest things was to end it.

The man climbed out of the elevator and into the bullpen. Gibbs looked up from the file on his desk his eyes slowly moving between the men. Standing up the silver haired man motioned with his head for them to follow him.

Walking through the building they ended up in the observation room. Nicholas McCoy was sitting in the interrogation room. He looked like hell and Tony couldn't help just a little better knowing that he was locked up.

Tony was man enough to admit that McCoy was a good looking man. His hair was a salt and pepper and curling around his ears. It obviously had been growing out since he faced his death though. If it was a different situation he would hold no qualm flirting with him.

The thing about the other man that made Tony freeze though was the man's eyes. They were a dark gray color that reminded Tony of the storms that used to have him hiding under the blankets when he was a child. Completely terrifying.

"Nicky?" Tim whispered sounding so lost.

"You don't have to do this," Gibbs reassured calmly, "I can question him."

"But you haven't yet."

"No, I haven't."

"Why not?"

Blue eyes looked over at the young Marine without saying a word. After a moment of silence Tim nodded his head quietly before leaving the room. It seemed the man was as ready to question his ex as he would ever be.

Groaning softly Tony leaned against the wall. A hand came to rest on his shoulder causing him to look up at his boss. The man had the same resolved look in his eyes that McGee did, but with the added look of trepidation.

"I wouldn't be doing this if I thought there was a better way," Gibbs assured Tony.

"That doesn't actually make me feel better right now," Tony muttered to him.

"I didn't think it would. He has to do this though."

"Face the guy that broke his heart? There's no outcome of this where he doesn't end up even more hurt than he already is, Boss!"

"No, but there is an outcome where he doesn't end up giving up hole in the world."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Just watch him."

Turning his eyes towards the two-way mirror Tony watched as McCoy looked over at the door. Dark gray eyes widened in surprise as Tim walked through the door. It looked like the last thing he was expecting was the man he left behind.

No words were spoken as Tim sat across from the suspect. Tony watched as McCoy's breathing picked up slightly. It made no sense to the agent. McCoy already knew that Tim was part of the case. Hell, he had taken shots at him. Why did he look so shocked?

"I didn't think you'd come to see me," McCoy spoke his voice soft yet deep, "At least not without a weapon."

"You know I don't need a weapon to harm you," Tim said back with a smirk.

"I would hope so. I am the one that taught you how to fight."

Shaking his head Tim looked over at the window unknowingly meeting Tony's eyes. Tony shifted slightly where he was wishing he was in the room with Tim. Groaning he rested his head on the wall his eyes slipping shut. There was nothing he could do but wait and listen.

"A year ago we were in Sudan," Tim said turning back to McCoy, "You disappeared during a gun fight. Your body was never found. For a year you were considered an M.I.A. Marine. Everyone thought you were dead."

"Seems they jumped to conclusion," McCoy replied motioning to himself, "I'm quite alive."

"So I can see. Though I doubt many others will be seeing you again."

"And why's that, Tim?"

"Because nothing you say after this moment matters. You're a traitor. You're going to be charged with that and there's nothing that will change that."

"So why are you here if you have all the answers?"

"The answers are to what you did."

"And what answers do you have?"

Opening the file in front of him Tim began to place photo after photo on the table. A sarcastic smile to McCoy's lips as he picked up the evidence and began to read them. He made a handful of thoughtful noises before placing them down.

This was the guy that McGee was in love with? He might have been attractive, but Tony didn't believe for one second that the younger man was that shallow. No, there was more to McCoy. There had to be more to him.

At least that was what Tony was hoping for. He still didn't know much about Tim so it was completely possible that McCoy was exactly the type of person that the man would normally date. What did that say about Tony?

The agent knew that he wasn't exactly the best person. He was loud and brash and really only cared for himself in a lot of situations. At least that's the way he was with people that he didn't know. They acted the same way towards him.

Tony made sure that the people he dated knew that he wasn't in for the long haul. He liked to have fun and that was perfectly fine. As long as everyone knew what was going on than there was no problem.

Tim was different though. For Tony he wasn't a one and done type of deal and he had thought that the younger man wanted it that way too. Now that Tony saw how different he was from McCoy he began to question if he was reading things wrong.

"Is this supposed to mean something to me?" McCoy asked with a cock of his eyebrow.

"You were trying to bring people into the country illegally and set them up in small towns where it would be difficult for them to be found," Tim lied artfully, "From what we can tell you were bringing those men in the warehouse to the names so they could buy the names that you had collected."

"And why would I collect names? They're easy enough to come up with."

"It's not easy to come up with names that have no connection to anything. Those are the important thing. If the police or long lost family members came looking for one of your people then your entire plan would be blown."

"My plans? Since when am I the one in control of the operation?"

"Since you're the one that's going to take the fall for it all."

"Don't threaten me, Timothy."

"We both know it's not a threat. You got yourself into this situation and there's nothing you can do about it."

"Then why are you even… Wait… You didn't know what the names were for did you?"

A smirk came to the blond's lips as the suspect figured his lie out. Tony expected McCoy to be angry but he surprised them by laughing. He throw his head back his whole body shaking so hard Tony thought the man would fall over.

"You've gotten better at lying," McCoy said still chuckling, "Do you remember our four year anniversary? You had gotten me those beautiful cufflinks and tried to keep it a secret."

"You knew as soon as I got back home from picking them up."

"And you walked into our place and I couldn't help teasing you by asking what color they were. You sounded so adorable stuttering."

"I remember. It was one of the best nights of my life."

An awkward silence came over the interrogation room. That was when Tony saw what Tim had seen in the other Marine. He was actually a sweet guy when he wanted to be. It seemed as if he was not all that easy to read after all.

"I'm sorry, Tim," McCoy whispered reaching out to place a hand on Tim's.

Instantly Tim flipped his hand over letting their fingers link. For a moment they looked exactly like the couple they used to be. It broke Tony's heart seeing just how far they had fallen in such a short time.

Tim obviously loved the other man from everything that Tony had seen. The thing that surprised the agent was McCoy. The dark gray eyes had softened so much. The man loved Tim as much as Tim loved him. That much Tony knew now.

Tony had known that their relationship wasn't fake, but to see it with his own eyes was something else. He hated the man for all the pain that he put Tim through and he had thought that maybe it had been like what he and Jeanne had had.

Not that he wished that situation on anyone, but he had truly thought that McCoy was lying to Tim about loving him. Seeing how wrong he was made Tony even more confused. Why would he leave Tim if he loved him?

"I'm sorry, Tim," McCoy whispered looking away from the blond, "I… I know I hurt you."

"Hurt me?" Tim asked a sad laugh escaping his lips, "You broke my heart, Nicky. I thought that you and I would spend the rest of our lives together. I wanted to marry you. I was looking at rings!"

Tim pulled his hands away from McCoy's and stood up. Tony watched the beautiful green eyes fill with tears. He wanted to go into the room and pull the younger man into a hug, but before he could do anything though McCoy was up and wrapping Tim in his arms.

The Marine stiffened long enough that Tony was sure that he was going to pull away. Instead Tim turned around letting the arms hold him closely. They looked so comfortable together. Like they belonged.

"I love you, Timothy McGee," McCoy said his voice firm and filled with truth, "God, I love you, but I'm not like you. I'm not the good guy."

"It really was all you? You did this by yourself?" Tim questioned his voice breaking.

"Every last detail. I found names that had no attachments and I gave them to people that I knew would pay a good price."

"And you didn't care what type of people they were bringing in? What if they were terrorists, Nicky?"

"Terrorists pay the best."

Pulling away from McCoy Tim stared at his ex for a moment before his hand came out to punch McCoy in the face. That had Gibbs moving into the room without a word to stop Tim if he decided to do anymore damage.

Gibbs took Tim by the arm and pulled him out of the room before turning to the two-way mirror and motioning with his head to Tony. Taking the hint the agent stood up and went into the hallway. Tim was standing at the now closed door of the interrogation room looking lost.

"Hey," Tony spoke resting a hand on the back of the younger man's back, "Come on."

Tim was completely quiet as the older man lead him to the elevator and down to the morgue. It might not be a normal place to talk, but it had tea so it worked for Tony and he had a feeling that the Marine was not in the mood to fight.

"Ah, Mr. DiNozzo and Mr. McGee," Ducky greeted with a smile, "How can I help you today?"

"Tea?" Tony requested softly.

Understanding come into the older man's eyes before he lead Tony and Tim into his office and left them alone. After the door closed Tony went about making them both a cup of tea leaving McGee to sit on the couch in silence.

"How did I not know who he was?" Tim asked sounding lost, "He and I were together for years. I wanted to marry him. Didn't he..."

Tim trailed off tears finally spilling over. Placing the cups down Tony moved to the younger man's side and pulled him into a hug. The blond curled into him his tears soaking into the agents jacket. This was not how Tony dreamed of having the man in his arms.

"He loved you, Tim," Tony soothed rubbing his back.

"He choose to fake his death over staying with me," Tim muttered against his shoulder.

"I know, but that doesn't change that he loved you."

The man fell silent Tony had no idea what else he was supposed to say to make the other man feel better. Instead he let himself relax into the couch and hold the man. Hopefully Tim would ask if he needed anything.

Tony had no idea how long they were sitting there before the man pulled away. The man stood up and moved to the other side of the office before turning back. His hand came up to wipe away the last of his tears.

"Sorry about that," Tim sighed shaking his head, "Guess it finally caught up to me."

"It's alright," Tony shrugged, "Lasted longer than I would have."

"I'm going to… I'm going to go. I need to think."

"Yeah. Of course. I'll see you tomorrow?"

Tim offered the agent a sad smile before turning and leaving the room. Sighing Tony ran a hand through his hair not knowing if he was ever going to see the younger man again or if he was just going to disappear now that he had his answers.


	8. Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> As I write this I realize that there probably won't actually be any sex in it. I know. Odd for one of my stories, but it's just not there. Sorry if that's what you were hoping for!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.
> 
> Okay, so there's either one or two chapters left in this story so I hope you all enjoyed it! ^_^

Groaning lowly Tony pushed the file he was reading away from him. He had been attempting to get his mind to focus once more, but for the last two weeks he hadn't been able to get a certain blond Marine out of his head.

Ever since Tim had walked out of Ducky's office it had been complete radio silence. Not even Abby had heard from the younger man. For all Tony knew he had been told to go to God knows where doing God knows what.

Tony had known that there was a chance that he'd never see the man again, but he thought he'd have more of a say in what happened. Instead Tim just disappeared as if what they had been thinking of doing meant nothing.

Okay, so it didn't actually mean anything, but Tony had had some hope to figure it all out. He had actually wanted to attempt an adult relationship. At least, that's what he had began to think of doing now that the case was over.

The night that Tim had left Tony found himself sitting on his couch with a bottle of whiskey in front of him. He spent hours sitting there thinking over everything that had been happening between him and Tim.

He had spent awhile focusing solely on how Tim and McCoy had panted. It was on such complicated terms that even with McCoy being in jail Tony questioned exactly how over it was for the blond.

In the back of his mind Tony knew that that was the reason that McGee had disappeared. If Tony was having such a hard time trying to figure everything out then it had to be horrible for the Marine.

Tony understood all of that, but that didn't actually make him feel better about what was happening. He had hoped that Tim would at the very least give him a good-bye before he walked out of his life for good.

"Tony," Bishop said stopping in front of his desk, "Are you okay?"

"Fine," Tony responded instantly, "Why do you ask?"

"You've been really quiet since..."

The woman's sentence trailed off refusing to say the name of the man that she thought was hurting her friend. A small smile came to his lips as he thought that. He really was surrounded by some amazing people.

Standing up Tony went to the woman's side and pulled her into a hug. It felt wonderful knowing that people truly cared about him. It was everything that he had been hoping for since he was a child. A family all his own.

"Thank you," Tony whispered to his friend before letting go.

Bishop gave him one last smile then went to her desk to start to work. Tony, on the other hand, needed a break from staring at nothing. Deciding that he didn't want to be surrounded by silence he got in the elevator and went down to Abby's lab.

Loud music assaulted him the moment the doors opened bringing a smile to his lips. As much as he knew that goth would hate it she was actually rather predictable. It was when she was silent that one needed to start worrying.

The goth was in front of her computer trying quickly. Seeing how in the zone the woman was Tony decided to keep quiet. He knew just how annoying it was to have someone interrupt you when you were working.

Moving silently through the lab Tony took in all the things that he saw everyday but never really paid attention to. He knew that Abby had a lot of things, but he never noticed just how many there were.

Reaching out the agent picked up a small black mask. It was obviously something she had gotten down in New Orleans. It looked so old and beautiful. He wondered how it got to be in her possession.

Putting it back down he began to think about how the small lab had more personality in it than his whole apartment did. Tony always said that he was a simple man, but he knew that that was all just another lie he told himself.

Groaning Tony went fully into Abby's office and sat at her desk. He had come to be so proud of the person he grew up to be, but now he was questioning who that person was. Could he have possibly lost the person he was?

Closing his eyes Tony rested his head on the desk. He really hated whenever something made him think about himself. The more time he spent thinking about himself the more flaws that he ended up finding.

"Tony?" Abby spoke confused walking into her office, "What are you doing in here? Actually, when did you get in here and why didn't you say hello? Are you okay?"

Instead of saying anything Tony looked up from the desk letting her read his face. A soft sound of sadness left her lips as she rushed to his side. She wrapped her arms around him letting him curl into her chest.

"What's wrong, Tony?" Abby repeated finally slowing down

"Do you think I'm a bad person?" Tony questioned softly.

"What? No! Of course you're not a bad person. What would make you think that? Wait, is this about Timmy?"

"No. Not completely anyway. I just keep thinking about the fact that I'm in my forties and have only thought about settling own once in my life."

"That's once more than I have."

"Do you ever want to?"

"Not really. I'm happy the way I am. This is the life I always wanted. This isn't what you wanted?"

Sighing Tony pulled away from the goth and shrugged. In truth, he didn't know what he wanted anymore. Hell, he didn't know who he was. How could he possibly know what he wanted in his life if he didn't know himself.

"Tony?" Abby questioned staring at him, "What are you thinking?"

"I'm confused," Tony shook his head, "I thought I knew what I was doing, but now..."

"Because of McGee? You like him that much?"

"I didn't get a chance to find out."

Abby let out a soft sigh watching her friend. She hated seeing the agent in pain because of his own mind. Though as much as she hated to admit it him thinking the way he was might actually be the best thing for him.

She absolutely loved her friend, but even she could tell that he was unhappy with the way he went about his life. He could be so happy if he just stopped trying to hold himself away from his own happiness.

"Okay," Abby clapped her hands standing up, "You need a break."

"Abs," Tony sighed as she pulled him to his feet.

"No arguing, Mister. You need a break before you go completely insane. Take a long lunch and think about everything you want. You deserve to be happy. Go find away to make yourself happy!"

"Gibbs won't like that."

"He'd like it even less if his best agent suddenly was distracted to do his job. I'll take care of Gibbs. Just make sure you're back in two hours. Got it?"

Knowing that it was almost impossible to argue with the woman Tony nodded his head. Leaning forward he placed a kiss to her forehead before turning and walking out of the office without a word.

Maybe Abby was right. He had been telling himself that it was time to stop and think about everything. Every time he thought that though he pushed the thoughts away when they started to feel uncomfortable. Which happened very quickly.

It didn't take long before Tony found himself leaving the building and starting towards a nearby park. Even if Abby had gotten him a few hours of time to think he didn't want to go to far from wok in case he needed to get back quickly.

Taking a deep breath the agent forced himself to focus on everything that he had been running from. He only had two hours to before he had to get back to bring the person that he had always been. It couldn't be all that hard. Right?

Sighing he thought back to his time with Jeanne. He really had been in love with her. Even with their whole relationship being technically basked off of a lie he had hoped that somehow that wouldn't matter and somehow they would make it.

It had been a pipe dream since the very beginning. They had convinced himself that he wasn't the bad guy in that situation. Maybe he wasn't the bad guy. He had just been doing his job, but in the end it wasn't just Jeanne that got their heart broken.

It was wrong on so many levels that Tony could barely believe it. He had just wanted to find the person that he could spend him life with. He didn't know why he had always thought that that would be an easy thing to do.

Now that he was actually in the middle of everything he saw just how childish that was. Nothing was easy to get and if you were lucky enough to get it than you spent the rest of the time fighting for whatever it was that you had.

The sad part of that was that Tony had only ever seen the things fall apart. The last thing that he wanted was to gather up the courage to go for what he was dreaming of only to find out he wasn't strong enough to protect it.

Maybe that was the reason why he was running away all the time. He had seen things fall apart so often in his life that the idea of trying himself made him feel weak before he had even tried to go for it.

All the 'thinking' he was doing was really starting to hurt his head. It was just making him upset with himself. Anthony DiNozzo Jr. was not a weak person! So why was he running away from what he wanted again?

What he wanted was Timothy McGee. He had begun to think about having an adult like. At least an adult life outside of work. For awhile he had thought that there was a chance that McGee had wanted to have that with Tony as well.

Running a hand through his hair Tony tried not to curse at himself. Tim had enough on his plate without Tony dumping on him. The agent couldn't blame him for needed time to figure out what he was going to do next.

The Marine had known exactly what he had wanted in his life. For the most part that had been thrown in his face by his ex. Tony couldn't use his past as a reason not to figure out what he wanted himself.

A soft smile come to Tony's lips thinking about the younger man. He truly did like the blond. He was everything that Tony wasn't. Maybe that was why he was so attracted to the other man. He was the person Tony dreamed of being.

What if that was the thing that Tony had been missing? He had been focused so much on everything that he lacked that he overlooked one important thing. It wasn't that he didn't have it. It was that he didn't…

Before Tony could finish his thought he was pushed on his ass. He began to reach for his gun just as barking reaching his ears. Looking up the agent saw a large German Sheppard panting and barking happily in his face.

"Jett!" a voice yelled trying to pull the dog off of Tony, "I am so sorry, Sir. I don't know what's gotten into him. Jett! Heel!"

Tony helped the stranger push the dog off of him. Once it was off he took a deep breath finally not feeling like he was being smothered. A hand came into his view a moment later and he took it letting the man help him to his feet. The stranger suddenly stopped talking causing Tony to look up.

"Tim," Tony breathed catching sight of the man he had been thinking of.

"Tony," Tim smiled shyly, "Hey."

"Hey. How are you doing?"

"Tired mostly. I've been spending most of my time thinking. How are you?"

"Same actually."

The blond nodded his head his fingers messing with the dog leash. He looked so confused. It looked like Tim was just as lost as he had been feeling. It seemed as if he had been right about his thinking before.

"I'm sorry," Tim suddenly spoke up.

"For what?" Tony questioned confused.

"Not contacting you. I kept picking up the phone to call you, but I… I just couldn't do it. I was too scared.

"Scared? Of what? Me?"

Sighing Tim motioned with his head for the two of them to start walking. For awhile the two men walked in silence before Tim stopped and took a frisbe out of his bag and threw it watching the dog take off after it.

"Yes," Tim whispered not looking directly at the other man.

"Yes what?" Tony asked slowly, "Yes you're afraid of me? What would you be afraid of me?"

"Have you met you, Tony? You're amazing. Smart, funny, and so damn good looking. How could I not be afraid of you? You're everything that I'm not. I mean..."

Warmth filled Tony having the younger man rambling. He had been just as scared by the whole situation as Tony had been. Wow. There were a lot of things that one missed when they were focused on themselves.

Reaching out Tony gripped the back of Tim's head and pulled him close. Their lips met in a gentle kiss that had the agents heart speeding up. How could something so simple feel so amazingly wonderful?

Tim turned fully towards the older man his arms wrapping around his neck. A soft moan left the Marine's lips before he pulled back slightly. Hazel eyes darted over Tim's face taking in the beautiful blush on his cheeks.

The gorgeous green eyes darted around before finally stopping on Tony's stomach drop instantly. Had something already happened to make it so their relationship was over before it had even begun?

"What's wrong?" Tony questioned swallowing roughly, "I thought… Did you not want…?"

"No! It's nothing like that," Tim quickly assured.

"Then why do you look like that?"

"Tony… I have to be on a plane by three in the morning tomorrow. And… I can't tell you more than that."

Pulling away from the younger man Tony stared into his eyes hoping it was a bad joke. When he didn't laugh the brown haired man nodded his head stepping away from Tim needing to have the space.

"I'm sorry, Tony," Tim said in a pleading tone.

"It's okay," Tony smiled sadly, "You were never going to be here long. Just tell me if you'll be able to talk online."

"Yeah. Why? Wait… Do you… I don't understand."

"We'll keep in contact. Okay?"

"Yeah, I like that idea, Tony."


	9. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting around to writing this little fic! I'm actually really excited to see what comes about it. I'm not used to writing case study stories so I apologize if it's not the best. I like it though so I hope you do to!
> 
> As I write this I realize that there probably won't actually be any sex in it. I know. Odd for one of my stories, but it's just not there. Sorry if that's what you were hoping for!
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.
> 
> Okay, so there's either one chapter left in this story so I hope you all enjoyed it! ^_^

Yawning widely Tony rolled onto his back letting his eyes slowly adjust to the afternoon light. He really loved days he was off of work. It wasn't often that he got to simply lay there and enjoy his own bed.

It took him almost ten years of working as a cop before he realized that one of the things that he couldn't skimp out on was a good bed. He spent hours upon hours finding the right mattress and spent quite a bit of money on it.

Then he had to find the perfect bedding and pillows. It might sound odd, but one of his favorite things was when he got to go out and buy new bedding's. There was nothing that felt as good as laying completely naked on freshly washed sheets.

Closing his eyes Tony cuddled further into the sheets letting himself be surrounded by the warmth. There was only one thing that he could think of that would make the situation any better. That was having Tim in the bed with him.

Tony's heart both soared and ached at the thought of the young Marine. It had been close to two years since Tim had been state-side. Something that he had to admit made him feel bad about the whole thing.

Not that Tony questioned things about their relationship anymore. Even with all the space between the two of them. He and Tim still stayed in touch. Both trying to talk everyday. Though it was a little hard with whatever it was Tim was doing.

Every few days the Marine would send an email and their conversation would start again. It always made Tony's heart speed up slightly. He loved talking to the younger man. It always made his day better.

As hard as it was to admit, he was a little glad that Tim had had to go overseas. It meant that they had been able to get to know each other without all the pressures of a full relationship pushing them to do things they weren't ready for.

With Tim just getting out of an extremely messy relationship and Tony questioning everything that came with relationships it was more than a little insane. Going slowly in the building of them was for the best.

Now that they had two years of getting to know each other under their belts Tony felt good about them. He couldn't wait for the other man to be back so he could finally have the man back in his arms.

Licking his lips Tony sat up and reached for his cell phone. The first thing he saw when it turned on was a message from Tim. He knew that the smile on his lips looked a little bit ridiculous but he couldn't bring himself to care.

The smile only grew as he read over the good morning message. Tony had no idea what time it was where Tim was so he satisfied himself by saying good afternoon back. Not that that was what Tony truly wanted to type.

In the time they had been talking nothing sexual had come up. No that Tony was mad about that. He knew that that was a large step. The last thing he wanted was to push it. Though the idea was very appealing.

Having the younger man's body pressed against his own. Feeling his breath wash over his boy as they laid together. Hearing that beautiful voice moan and gasp and plead for him. Tasting his sweat as they rolled around together.

Oh, Tony couldn't wait until he could finally fulfill all the twisted little thoughts that he had spent more than his fair share of time with. He hoped Tim would enjoy the ideas as much as he had been.

Shaking his head Tony looked back at his phone pushing the thoughts away. The last thing he wanted to do was get caught up in those thoughts. He had more than enough time to think of them when he was in the shower later.

Seeing that the blond was requesting to video chat Tony moved around so he was leaning against the pillows. It was even harder to find a time where they both could chat through a video than it was for them to text. Tony loved those times.

Saying yes to the request Tony let his eyes run over the other man. He was sitting at the table in a non-descriptive room. Of course he was. The lat thing he could do was risk letting anyone, even Tony, know where he was.

Tony had to admit that Tim looked damn good. His skin looked pale almost as if he hadn't been in the sun since the last time he saw him. It was odd, but seeing how fair he was made Tony wonder what he'd look like against his royal blue sheets.

That was when he noticed that the man was in his uniform. The black jacket made him look even lighter than he probably was, but he looked absolutely amazing sitting there. There really was something about a man in uniform.

"You're still in bed," Tim greeted surprise clear in his voice, "And shirtless."

"Yeah," Tony nodded his head noticing the blush on the Marine's cheeks, "I just woke up."

"Oh, that's…. that's a good reason. Yeah..."

Tony couldn't help but chuckle hearing how shy he suddenly sounded. For how strong and powerful the younger man always sounded he was one of the shyest people that Tony had ever met. That was very appealing for some reason.

"Finally got some free time?" Tony questioned his sheets moving down his body as he adjusted himself.

"Something like that," Tim agreed his eye darting between the agent's exposed chest and whatever was on the other side of the phone, "I can't talk long. My higher ups just gave me my new orders."

"And you can tell me what they are?"

"No, I can tell you I have two months leave before I have to be there."

Tony's heart jumped hearing that. He wanted nothing more than to have the younger man in front of him. Now that he had the chance to finally have that happen he couldn't help but feel a little nervous about that happening.

From the way the blush on Tim's cheeks darkened he was thinking the same thing. Had the younger man been thinking the same things that he had been? Just what deliciously devious things had he been dreaming of doing to him when he got the chance?

"I'll be over there in about two days," Tim continued softly, "I was thinking… I mean… Maybe you'd like..."

"Tim," Tony interrupted his stuttering, "Are you trying to ask me out?"

"Yes?"

A chuckle left Tony's lips at the man's whispered question. It was adorable seeing him attempt to ask him out. The smile slipped off his face as he watched Tim's head snap to the side losing what little color it had gained.

Tony left himself go into full agent mode. He tried to figure out what was going on but there was nothing that he could see. At least he had no idea what was going on until the sound of gunfire echoed through the phone.

"What's going on, Tim?" Tony questioned his heart starting to race.

"I don't know," Tim responded in full Master Sergeant voice, "I have to go."

"Tim!"

The screen went black without another word from the Marine. Tony stared at the phone in a shocked silence. He knew that Tim had a dangerous job and he had seen him in action before. It was something else to see it and not be there to fight along side him.

Letting his phone drop to the bed Tony threw his blankets off and stood up. It was unlikely that anyone at NCIS would know what was going on with Tim, but he had to try. At least he couldn't just sit there doing nothing.

Grabbing some clothes without much thought he gathered his phone and keys and got in his car. He knew that his driving would probably scare even Ziva, but that did nothing to stop him from speeding the entire time.

By the time he got into the bullpen he knew that he looked more than a little crazy. Luckily, no one was stupid enough to even think of getting in his way. He'd feel bad about scaring them later, but for now he was happy they left him alone.

"Boss!" Tony called seeing the older man sitting at his desk.

"It's your day off, DiNozzo," Gibbs said not looking up from his work.

"Something happened with Tim."

Instantly Gibbs was out of his chair and on his way towards the Director's office. Tony followed behind the man explaining what he had seen. It wasn't much to go on, but it was enough for the older man to be worried.

"Hello, Gibbs," Vance sighed putting his cup of coffee down, "What can I do for you?"

"Master Sergeant Timothy McGee," Gibbs prompted.

"The man that help you with the McCoy case? What about him?"

"He might be in trouble. Anything you have on his current assignment?"

Vance looked between Tony and Gibbs before picking up his phone. Tony turned out as the man began to talk. It always ended badly whenever he listened to a one-sided conversation. He needed the full story all at once.

"He's fine, Tony," Gibbs soothed placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I hope so," Tony whispered feeling more than a little lost.

Falling into one of the chairs Tony felt as if he as going insane. In all the time he spent thinking about starting a relationship with the younger man he hadn't thought about what would happen if Tim was in danger and he wasn't able to help.

Hell, Tony had been lucky that he was on the phone with Tim when it happened. Though know that he was sitting there waiting for some answers he didn't feel so lucky. In truth, he felt sicker than he had ever felt before in his life.

It was so odd to think that though. Tony had been in a lot of life and death situations. Whether he was the one being threatened or it was someone he cared about he knew how he normally reacted. This was the furthest thing from what he did.

That didn't make sense to him at all. Of course he cared about Tim, but not more than his family. At least he didn't think he did. No, there was no reason why he would care about the younger man more than anyone else. Unless, it wasn't that he cared from him more but simply care from him different. Wait, did he…

"Boss?" Tony muttered his eyes darting over the room, "I think I love him."

"Finally figure that out?" Gibbs smirked slightly.

"You knew? Of course you knew. How did you know?"

Instead of answering Gibbs turned back towards Vance. There was nothing else that the man really needed to say anyway. Tony was the one that had to figure out how he had gotten there and exactly how he was supposed to deal with it.

For all the thinking that Tony did he hadn't realized that he had fallen for the man. He didn't actually thinks something like that would happen online. The man should really quit closing his mind to some of the things that went on around him.

Not that him falling for Tim would change anything. Tim's career had him overseas most of the time. That was pretty much the only thing that Tony knew about his job. Maybe Tim's job left him in more danger than Tony's did.

"Okay," Vance said softly, "Thank you, Sir."

Tony was on his feet before the phone was hung up. It wasn't difficult to tell that the Director wasn't pleased with the conversation. Whether it was because he didn't have any information or because the information was not what he wanted Tony was afraid to find out.

"Leon?" Gibbs questioned crossing his arms.

"Whatever McGee is working on is classified," Vance started standing up.

"And that stopped you?"

"Let me rephrase. McGee is classified. If not for the fact that he was part of an investigation we wouldn't have known he even existed."

The room went silent at that. Tony had known that the man was good at what he did, but the idea that he was so good he was a ghost was surprising. That put a little halt on how far the agent thought their relationship had gone.

Not that that was Tim's fault. If he couldn't tell people what his job actually was than he couldn't do it. It just felt odd knowing that in the end Tony could know everything about Tim without finding out what his job was.

"You can't tell us anything?" Tony asked dread filling his stomach.

"Nothing I say leaves this room," Vance stated calmly grabbing a glass and a bottle of scotch, "The people that were in contact with McGee and his team lost that contact with them. I don't know what they were doing or where they are. The only think they would say is that as of now they're out of contact and sending people to find out what happened."

"So we got nothing."

A sigh fell from Tony's lips hearing the older man speak. He knew that it wasn't Vance's fault, but that didn't mean he was happy about it. Tony had been hoping that the man would be able to tell him that everything was fine and Tim was coming home.

"I'm sorry, Tony," Vance offered placing the glass in his hands, "That's all I can tell you."

"I know," the agent agreed before downing the scotch, "At least people are looking for him and his people."

Tony knew that neither man believed what he was saying. He didn't even believe what he was saying. He had to say something though. Mostly because he wasn't going to breakdown crying in front of either of his bosses. No matter how much he wanted to.

A hand came to rest on his arm before helping him to his feet. Tony looked up at his boss but didn't say anything. The silver haired man lead Tony out of the office. Neither man said anything as they went down to the cars. Not that there was anything to say.

Gibbs pushed the younger man into his truck and started off towards somewhere. Tony knew that if he was paying attention he'd be able to figure it out, but he was trying to keep himself from thinking anymore than he already was.

All too soon the truck was stopped and he was being pulled out of it. It was then that Tony realized that he had been brought to Gibbs hose. He should have known that that was where they'd go, but in truth, he just didn't care.

Gibbs brought the younger man into the house and left him on the couch. Looking around the living room Tony felt the little control he had left slip away. Tears slowly started to stream down his face before he could really think about it.

The couch next to him sank down causing him to look up. He expected to see Gibbs sitting there instead he saw Abby. She looked nothing like she normally did so he knew that she had simply been at home relaxing or still sleeping.

Her eyes were filled with tears herself, but he knew that she was attempting to be strong for him. A broke chuckle left his lips causing both of them to wince. He hated listening to himself sound so week. Especially in front of people.

"He's going to be okay, Tony," Abby soothed holding him tightly.

"You don't know that," Tony muttered against her shoulder, "No one knows anything."

Rubbing a hand over his back Abby held him to her. Tony could feel the fabric under his eyes begin to get damp with his tears. He really didn't want to think about the situation anymore. Mostly because of how unlikely it was that Tim was okay.

A heavy warmth blanketed his back causing him to look behind him. Bishop sent him a soft smile before curling against his back. Once her head was down he could see that Ziva was behind her. As much as he hated it he was glad that his team was with him.

"We are here for you, Tony," Ziva said echoing his thoughts.

"Thanks," Tony whispered before laying his head back down on Abby once more.

The room fell into silence after that. There was nothing else that anyone could say that hadn't already been said. And since everyone knew how much he hated things repeated he was glad for the quiet as much as he wished for it to never be quiet again.

A grown fell from Tony's lips sometime later as he attempted to sit up. He had no idea when he fell asleep, but with the way the room was dark he could tell that it was night time. After a moment of trying not to wake the girls up he was finally on his feet.

Shaking his head Tony began to make his way to the basement figuring that's where Gibbs would be. A shadow from the backyard caught his eye though. Feeling confusion fill him Tony began to make his way towards the backdoor wishing he had this gun.

"It's just me, Tony," Gibbs said not looking away from the night sky.

"Boss?" Tony questioned confused.

"You're finally up."

"Yeah. What are you doing out here?"

"Nice sky."

"It is."

Gibbs looked over at Tony motioning for him to join him in the yard. Tony sighed to himself before moving to stand next to his boss. Looking up the younger man took in the stars wondering if the view was better wherever Tim was.

"Ugh," Tony groaned wanting to bash his head into something.

"Thinking about McGee again?" Gibbs asked though he probably already knew the answer.

"Yes and I can't stop thinking about him. It's giving me a headache and I just got up. I don't want to sit here thinking about him when there's nothing I can do."

Feeling his heart speed up with anger caused him to stop and take a few deep breaths. The last thing he wanted to do was breakdown again. He was not the type of person that let his emotions get the best of him. He was stronger than that.

"Welcome to being in love with a Marine," Gibbs chuckled with no amusement.

"This is it, isn't it?" Tony questioned softly, "I haven't even told him and it's over."

The smack the came to the back of his head was more gentle than normal but it was enough to get Tony to look at the older man. He cocked his eyebrow at the younger man. It caused the brunette to smile slightly. The man knew exactly how to get Tony to stop for a moment.

"Okay," Tony nodded his head, "I know. I really do know, Boss. I just need to know that Tim is okay. After that I'll be back to my normal self. Promise."

Gibbs nodded his head slightly before going towards the house. Tony stood there for a moment longer thinking about everything that had happened and realized what he had said. There really was nothing he could do. How could he deal with that?


	10. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're done! Oh how much fun this was. I loved it so much and I hope you loved it as much as I did.
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with new redos on stories or want to know more about stories to be starting soon please follow me at Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing.

"Hey, Tony," Abby greeted bouncing over to him in the parking lot, "How are you?"

It had been almost a week since Tim had hung up on him and there was still no response from him or the team that was sent to look into whatever had happened. It wasn't all that surprising in truth, but that didn't mean that he was happy about it.

Even though it had only been a few days Tony already felt like things weren't going to change anytime soon. Tim wasn't going to be found and brought back home. There was little to no chance that there was going to be a happy ending and Tony should stop trying to think of it.

Okay, so that was a little on the negative side, but that's what Tony felt at the moment. Or maybe he was finally starting to go crazy from lack of sleep. It was probably the latter one though at this point in time he'd take either.

He knew that his friends had been trying to make him feel better about the whole situation, but nothing was helping. Tony wanted to make them feel better about failing to make him feel better, but he couldn't make himself do it. It was as if the agent was already mourning.

In the end, Tony was acting like a complete and total asshole to his friends and that pissed him off. He lost something that he had never truly had. He shouldn't be taking it out on the people that stood by him when he was horrible to them.

"Tony?" Abby questioned placing a hand on his shoulder, "You in there?"

"Yeah," Tony replied shaking the thoughts from his head, "Sorry. Got caught up in thinking."

"It's okay. Hey, you know how I love you a lot?"

"Yes..."

"Okay, keep that in mind when I say this."

Abby gripped him by the shoulder and moved him so they were face to face. She smiled widely before pulling him into a tight hug for a moment. When she pulled back though she had a very serious look on her face.

"What is it, Abby?" Tony asked confused.

"You look like crap!" Abby exclaimed her hands going to her hips, "Have you gotten any sleep?"

"Some."

"Well, you need more young man."

Cocking an eyebrow he waited for a moment before she turned away with a huff and started towards the building. Sighing Tony made his way after the goth only to catch up to her in the elevator. As soon as the doors closed he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and kissed her forehead.

"I'm sorry," Tony whispered staring into her eyes, "I know I've been being..."

"A grade-A asshole?" Abby completely with a glare before smiling, "You have been, but I guess I can forgive you."

"You're the best, Abs."

"I know. Look, Tony, I know you're under a lot of stress right now, but you can't push us away because you're hurting. We love you."

"I know and I'm trying. I really am. I just… I hate feeling so useless. I'm completely lost in this and you know how much I hate not being able to help someone I love."

"Everyone hates that, but you need us right now. You know that."

"Okay. Promise you'll call me out next time I do that?"

"Promise."

Smiling Abby leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek. He pulled away from her when the elevator doors opened. With one last smile he left the elevator and went into the bullpen. Ziva and Bishop were at their desks doing some work.

Tony offered them both a shy smile hoping they were as forgiving as Abby was. It took a moment before either of them did anything, but soon they were smiling back at him. Seeing them smile made him feel a bit better about the whole thing.

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs barked from upstairs.

Spinning around Tony looked at his boss only to see the older man going into Vance's office. Tony's heart jumped into this throat. There was only one reason why his boss would call him upstairs. Okay, so there were a lot, but it felt like only one.

Tony ran a hand through his hair knowing that he was driving himself insane waiting for news. Every phone call he got, every time Gibbs called for him, and so many other times when it was just his own imagination.

A part of him wanted to give up on waiting for news. It was unlikely that any news at this point was going to be good, if he even got news. He just wanted the whole thing to be over. He couldn't take it anymore.

Sighing Tony put his things down before going upstairs himself. Cynthia simply motioned him inside without bothering to call Vance. Take a few deep breaths he tried to steel himself against whatever it was that was going to be said before going inside.

Closing the door behind him hazel eyes moved around the office only to realize that Vance wasn't there. His eyes landed on his boss and saw nothing to give away what was going on. Taking another deep breath he moved so he was standing in front of him.

"Hey, Boss," Tony greeted his voice soft, "Where's Vance?"

"Sit," Gibbs said calmly.

Tony followed his bosses instructions and sat at the table. His heart was pounding in his chest and he wanted nothing more than to turn and run. He already knew what was going to be said, didn't he? He didn't need to hear it out loud.

"Boss," Tony whispered his eyes closed, "Please just tell me."

"Tony," Gibbs answered his voice sounding exactly how he did talking to a victim's family, "They found Tim and his team."

Nodding his head Tony felt as if the air had been punched out of him. How was that possible? He already had known what his boss was going to say. Hell, he had known that this conversation had been coming since the phone call with Tim. Why did it hurt so much?

Without thinking Tony stood up and began to pace. His breathing began to speed up as his body began to shake. It felt strange, but even though he was just standing there it felt as if he had been running in a marathon.

"Tony!" Gibbs called forcing him to stop, "McGee isn't dead."

"He's okay?" Tony questioned the words barely sinking in.

"He's not dead. He's not out of the woods yet, but he's on his way home."

Hazel eyes slowly opened wide as he finally understood what his boss was saying. Tim was still alive! For how much everyone kept saying that things would be okay he hadn't believed them. He had been so sure that Tim was going to be found dead or not found at all.

"He's not out of the woods yet," Gibbs continued, "There's still a chance that he won't pull through."

"Do you know what happened to him?" Tony asked his voice sounding rushed even to him, "What, is his team okay?"

"Most of his team is fine. Other than that I don't know."

"Okay. That's good. Really good. He's okay, Boss."

Gibbs let go of Tony's shoulder pushing him towards the door. That was all that the agent needed before he was out of the office and into the elevator. It wasn't long before he was in his car and on his way to the hospital Tim was at.

"Hello," the nurse at the front desk greeted with a smile, "How can I help you?"

"Special Agent Tony DiNozzo looking for Master Sergeant Timothy McGee," Tony requested before shaking his head, "Though I'm not completely sure he's here yet not that I think about it."

"Being brought from overseas, Sweetie? Don't worry. It happens to the best of us. I got here two days before my brother did a few years back."

"Your brother served?"

"He did. So did both of my parents and all four of my grandparents."

"But not you?"

"No, I get seasick just looking at boats. Here we go. You're in luck. You're only going to have to wait an hour."

"Okay, one hour. I'll be here."

Turning around Tony went to the coffee maker and poured himself a cup before sitting down. An hour wasn't all that long to wait. Though he had a feeling the time was going to drag on. Or go by quickly. Either was it wasn't going to be fun.

Closing his eyes Tony began to think about Tim being hurt. He had spent more than his fair share of time in waiting rooms because of his team being hurt. Could he really handle having to do that for another person?

It was hard to think about since he was already in love with Tim, but now that he was waiting to find out if he was going to be alright he couldn't stop the thoughts. He had no idea how he was supposed to deal with the whole situation.

All he wanted was to see Tim. Why the hell was he even sitting here thinking about it? The answer should have been a clear yes! Still, he found himself questioning everything that had lead him to that moment. He thought he was past that!

"Hey," an older woman said holding a cookie in his face, "I was going to get you a cup of coffee, but you already have one."

"I do," Tony responded confused.

"You looked like you were about to cry and I thought a cookie might help."

A breathy chuckle left Tony's lips as he took it from the woman. She took a seat next to him making sure her body was facing him. Taking a small bite he turned to her but kept his eyes on the cookie. He didn't want to talk, but he didn't want to seem rude either.

"Waiting for a loved one, Dear?" she asked radiating a wave of calmness.

"Yeah," Tony nodded, "Are you?"

"No, I'm waiting for my husband to get off his shift. It's our fiftieth anniversary. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Willow Stone."

"Tony DiNozzo. Pleasure to meet you and congratulations."

"Thank you. Now you want to tell me why you look so horrible?"

Cocking his head to the side he motioned to the waiting room. He thought it was pretty obvious what he was doing. Willow looked around and nodded her head before turning back to him giving him a look of disbelief.

"This is only part of the problem," Willow said shaking her head, "I've been in a lot of waiting rooms so I've seen a lot of grieving families. You're not just grieving. Something else is going on in that head of yours."

"Look, Mrs. Stone..." Tony tried to start.

"Call me Willow and don't even try that. You need to get it off of your chest and neither of us are going anywhere. Talk."

Licking his lips Tony stared at the older woman wondering why she was. How could she sit across from him and be able to read him that quickly? Was he really that much off his game or did she have some sort of superpower?

"Talk," Will repeated firmly.

"Okay," Tony sighed before nodding his head, "Okay, I've been talking to this guy that I'm attracted to and..."

"And you fell in love with him. Now he's on his way here and you're questioning if you can handle being in a relationship with him."

"How did you..."

"Oh, it's not a new story, Sweetie. I've heard it before and I'll hear it again."

"You've heard it before? So you have some answers?"

Hearing the doors open Willow and Tony turned towards the door. The woman smiled and stood up pressing a kiss to the lips of the man that walked through the door. He grinned pushing her hair from her face before they turned towards him.

"You already know the answer," Willow smiled.

"Agent DiNozzo," the nurse said before he could answer Willow, "Master Sergeant McGee is here."

"Go get him, Tony. Tell him how you feel. That's all the answer you need."

He watched the older couple leave the waiting room for a moment. She was right he already knew what he was going to do. Taking a deep breath he turned back to the nurse and followed her through the hallways and into Tim's room.

"Visiting hours are over at ten," the nurse smiled gently, "I'm Amy. Just call if you need anything."

Nodding his head Tony made his way into the room. Hazel eyes looked over the man in the bed hating what he saw. This was the man he loved? He was covered in bruises and his face was swollen making it hard to even believe it was him.

"Hey," Tony whispered sitting in the chair next to the bed, "I don't know if you can hear me, but I just wanted to tell you that I'm here and that I'm not going anywhere. Just please be okay. I really want to be able to say this to your face. I love you, Tim."

"Love...too..." came the soft muttered phrase causing Tony to laugh in happiness.

"You're awake. Or not. Either way I'm here and I'm staying, Tim. I'm here."


	11. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so a lot of people were displeased with how I finished this story so I decided to make a small little chapter at the end to show what happened. It isn't very long, but I hope you guys like it better than you liked the last one.
> 
> If you want to be kept up to date with redos on stories or want to know more about stories that will be started soon or even ask me to write a story for you please follow me on Facebook under SilverMidnight52! I own nothing!

Staring out the window of his car Tony found himself forcing himself to breathe. After months in the hospital and in rehab Tim was finally able to get out of the hospital. As long as someone was there to help him.

At first it was going to be his sister Sarah that was going to help take care of him, but with her college and the internship she was starting she didn't have a lot of time to take care of herself let alone him. That left Tony to help.

He had already talked to Gibbs and Vance so he had three weeks vacation to help him. In truth he was both excited and down right terrified by that. Three weeks alone in a small apartment with the man that he had fallen for.

Over the months that they had been together in the hospital things between them had been pretty good. Given pretty good did not involve them actually living in the same place, but he could do that. He hoped.

With everything that had happened between them Tony had decided that going slowly was their best bet. That didn't stop him from thinking about the future. Thinking about that never failed to bring a smile to his lips.

He couldn't believe himself. Anthony DiNozzo Jr. was not the type of person to settle down with anyone. Yet that was exactly what he wanted to do with Tin and they hadn't really even talked about it before.

At the end of the day though he didn't really care about that. All he wanted was the have Tim in his life. As far as he knew the younger man wanted that too. Tony really couldn't wait for that to happen.

Though it didn't seem like he had to wait all that long. He had Tim were going to be living together now. Okay, so Tim couldn't do any of the things that he knew they both wanted to do until the other man was fully healed.

That was the other thing that like to run through his head every time he was thinking of something good. Tim was a Marine through and through. Nothing was ever going to change that and he didn't want it to change.

One of the things that made him fall in love with the blond was his strength. It was amazing to watch him set his mind to something and then do it. Tony had to admit that seeing that made him think that Tim was the sexiest man he knew.

Add that to his heart and his intelligence Tony was complete toast. If he hadn't fallen for the Marine when he was overseas he would have after spending so much time together. Tim was just too good of a person not to fall for.

Shaking his head Tony climbed out of his car and started towards the blond's room. He knew that the younger man would be waiting for him and he couldn't wait to see him. He was turning into a lovesick puppy.

"Tony," Tim greeted with a smile.

"Hey," Tony breathed out feeling as if his breath had been knocked out of him.

The Marine was finally starting to look like himself. His hair was a little longer than normal but it looked good on him. He was also starting to gain some of his weight back after losing a lot on bed rest. He looked good.

Without thinking Tony went to his side and took his hand in his. A brilliant smile came to the man's lips as he squeezed his hand back. It was just a simple smile but it made his heart speed up at the sight.

"Are you ready?" Tim asked gently.

"Shouldn't I ask you that?" Tony questioned back.

"You can, but I'm not scared."

"And you think I am?"

"Are you?"

"Terrified. I can't wait to do this though. To be with you."

Green eyes softened at the older man's words as a strong hand pulled him down. Their lips brushed together gently causing a shiver of pleasure to run up his spine. It was so easy to get lost in Tim when he surrounded him like he was.

"I love you, Tony," Tim whispered against his lips.

"I love you too, Tim. I love you too."


End file.
